SQL Server Management Studio keyboard shortcuts
Queries, results, explorers, bookmarks, and editing in SSMS.
56 shortcuts Windows checked September 14, 2026
Print all 56 shortcuts One sheet with every shortcut in this app, ready for the printer or a PDF.
This app has a Windows catalog in Shortivo. No other operating system is published for it yet.
21 actions and 21 key variants match.
- SQL Server Management Studio Documented
| Action | Keys | Row actions |
|---|---|---|
| Show Object Explorer Anywhere | Windows F8 | Source |
| Show Object Explorer details Anywhere | Windows F7 | Source |
| Show registered servers Anywhere | Windows CtrlAltG | Source |
| Show Template Explorer Anywhere | Windows CtrlAltT | Source |
| Show Solution Explorer Anywhere | Windows CtrlAltL | Source |
| Show the toolbox Anywhere | Windows CtrlAltX | Source |
| Switch full screen mode Anywhere | Windows ShiftAltEnter | Source |
| Run the query Query editor | Windows F5 | Source |
| Parse the query Query editor | Windows CtrlF5 | Source |
| Show the estimated execution plan Query editor | Windows CtrlL | Source |
| Cancel the running query Query running | Windows AltBreak | Source |
| Include the actual execution plan Query editor | Windows CtrlM | Source |
| Show results in a grid Query editor | Windows CtrlD | Source |
| Show results as text Query editor | Windows CtrlT | Source |
| Switch between the query and the results Query editor | Windows F6 | Source |
| Copy the result grid with headers Results grid | Windows CtrlShiftC | Source |
| Undo the last edit Query editor | Windows CtrlZ | Source |
| Redo the undone edit Query editor | Windows CtrlY | Source |
| Refresh the IntelliSense cache Query editor | Windows CtrlShiftR | Source |
| Delete the word to the left Query editor | Windows CtrlBackspace | Source |
| Delete the word to the right Query editor | Windows CtrlDelete | Source |
About SQL Server Management Studio and its shortcuts
SQL Server Management Studio is where a lot of database work still happens, and its keyboard matters because the loop is so repetitive: execute, read the result, edit, execute again. Beyond that it offers commands for the object explorer, query windows, and switching how results are displayed.
SSMS is Windows only. It inherits its editor from Visual Studio, including the option to switch keyboard schemes, so an installation set up by someone else can differ.
Where the SQL Server Management Studio keys came from
Read from 1 documentation page published by the makers of SQL Server Management Studio. Report a key that is wrong
To see how one action is done in other apps as well as SQL Server Management Studio, browse the shortcuts by task. Shortcuts by task