How to Use a Computer Without a Mouse

This article shows you how to operate on your computer without a mouse. You can do this using the “Mouse Keys” feature on Windows computers that support this feature and all Mac computers, or you can use a combination of keyboard shortcuts and arrow keys to manipulate.

Table of Contents

On Windows

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Try using basic keyboard shortcuts. You can use the arrow keys of the calculator and the ↵ Enter key to move the selections in the open window and select them in turn. Additionally, typing a character on the desktop or in a Windows application (such as File Explorer) switches your selection to information that begins with that character. Some keyboard shortcuts you can use are as follows: ^{[1] X Trusted Source Microsoft Support Go to source}

Alt + Tab ↹ — Switch between open windows.
Alt + F4 — Close the open application or window.
⊞ Win + D — Minimize the entire window to show the desktop.
Ctrl + Esc — Opens the Start menu.
⊞ Win + E — Open File Explorer.
⊞ Win + X — Open the Advanced settings menu.
⊞ Win + I — Open Settings.
⊞ Win + A — Opens Action Center.

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Make sure your computer has a number pad. Without the number pad on the right side of your computer’s keyboard (next to the row of number keys at the top of the keyboard), you won’t be able to use this method.

You can still use the keyboard shortcuts listed in the first step.

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Open Start

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by pressing the ⊞ Win key (the key with the Windows logo). You will see a screen showing the Start window.

You can also press Ctrl + Esc to open the Start window.

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Type ease of access to find your computer’s Ease of Access Center.

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Select Ease of Access Center . Use the arrow keys to select this option at the top of the Start window if necessary, and then press ↵ Enter . The screen will display the Ease of Access Center window.

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Select the Make the keyboard easier to use link in the middle of the window. Press the ↓ key until you have selected this option, then press ↵ Enter to open it.

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Select the blue Set up Mouse Keys link near the top of the page. Drag to the bottom of the screen with the ↓ key, then press ↵ Enter .

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Enable Mouse Keys. Press the ↓ key to select the box and the text “Turn on Mouse Keys” and then press the + key.

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Scroll down to the “Pointer speed” section. Press the ↓ key until you have selected the “Top speed” slider in the “Pointer speed” section.

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Adjust the speed of the mouse pointer. After you have adjusted a value, you can press the Tab key ↹ to move to another selection:

Top speed – Indicates the movement speed of the mouse pointer when at the fastest level. Press → key to increase the fastest mouse speed or press ← key to decrease speed. This setting can be very high (such as 75% or higher).
Acceleration – Indicates the time at which the mouse pointer reaches its maximum speed. Press → key to increase acceleration, or press ← key to decrease. This setting will be around 50%.

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Select OK at the bottom of the window. This will enable Mouse Keys and close the window.

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Use the numeric keypad to move the mouse pointer. You can use the 4 , 8 , 6 and 2 keys to move left, up, right and down, respectively.

Use the 1 , 7 , 9 and 3 keys to move the cursor by 45°.
If the mouse doesn’t move, press the Num key (or Fn + Num on some computers), and then try moving the mouse again.

On Mac

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Use basic keyboard shortcuts. You can use the Mac’s arrow keys and the Return key to move the mouse pointer’s selection around the open window, but you can also use the following keyboard shortcuts to perform some more complex operations: : ^{[2] X Research Source}

⌘ Command + Q — Exit the application (or open window).
⌘ Command + Space — Open the Spotlight search bar in the center of the screen.
⌘ Command + Tab ↹ — Switch to the next window.
⌘ Command + N — Open a new Finder window if you are on the desktop.
Alt + F2 , then ⌘ Command + L — Open System Preferences.
Ctrl + F2 — Select the Apple Menu (press ⏎ Return to open).

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Open the Accessibility Options window. Depending on the model, you will use one of the following shortcuts: ^{[3] X Research Source}

MacBook with Touch Bar – Tap the Touch ID button 3 times continuously.
MacBook without Touch Bar – Press Fn + ⌥ Option + ⌘ Command + F5 at the same time.
iMac (desktop Mac) – Press ⌥ Option + ⌘ Command + F5 at the same time.

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Enable Mouse Keys. Tap the Touch ID button 3 times (on Macbooks with Touch Bar) or press ⌘ Command + ⌥ Option + F5 (on all Macs) to do this.

You can also use the ↓ key to check the “Enable Mouse Keys” box and press the ⏎ Return key (or Spacebar on some computers) to check.

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Keep the Accessibility Options window open. This allows you to disable Mouse Keys using the keyboard shortcut you used to enable Mouse Keys.

However, you cannot type while Mouse Keys is on.

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Move the mouse pointer. By using the U , 8 , O , and K keys, you can move the mouse pointer left, up, right, or down, respectively.

Press the J , 7 , 9 or L keys to move the cursor 45° left, up then left, up and right, or down and right respectively.

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Click with the 5 key. Key 5 is equivalent to the left click button when you use Mouse Keys.

You can also hold down the Contrp key while pressing the 5 key to perform a right-click operation.

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Keep clicking. By moving the mouse pointer to an icon and pressing the M key, you get a “hold” action, allowing you to drag the icon below the mouse pointer with the scroll keys.

This is also useful when you want to enable menus that require a hold, such as the delete menu.
You can press the key . to stop holding the click.

Advice

If you accidentally press the spacebar and scroll down the web page, press the Shift key and the spacebar to return to the original position.

Steps

On Windows

On Mac

Advice

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