Vim Shortcuts

Movement

From vimtutor

To move the cursor, press the h,j,k,l keys as indicated.

^ k Hint: The h key is at the left and moves left. < h l > The l key is at the right and moves right. j The j key looks like a down arrow. v

Normal and Insert, Switching Modes

Description	Shortcut
Enter insert mode, from normal mode	i (insert before cursor), a (append after cursor)
Leave insert mode, activate normal mode	Esc or Ctrl + c or Ctrl + [ (US Keyboard)
Leave insert mode, activate normal mode for 1 command	Ctrl + o
Quit and Save	Z Z , :wq
Quit and do not save	Z Q , :q!

File Explorer, netrw

Description	Shortcut
File Explorer, open	:Explore or :edit .
File Explorer, new tab in current directory	:Te
File Explorer, open file selected in new tab	t
File Explorer, open file selected in split	s
File Explorer, Delete file	D
File Explorer, Rename file	R
File Explorer, Make directory	d

Command (Ex) Mode - Frequently Used

Description	Shortcut
Save (write)	:w
Save all open buffers	:wa
Quit	:q
Save only if there are changes and quit	:x
Save, write buffer even if no changes and quit	:wq
See working directory	:pwd
Change directory to current open file/buffer	:cd %:p:h
Change directory to specific directory	:cd <directory>
Change directory to current working directory (cwd)	:lcd
Quit without saving	:q!

Command Mode - Other

Description	Shortcut
Search: command history	C-f
Search: set case insensitive	:set ic
Search: set case sensitive	:set noic
Search: highlight	:set hls
Edit <file>	:e <file> or :edit <file
Show list of commands / autocomplete	: <…> Ctrl + D or tab
Autocomplete, chose choices	Tab
Autocomplete, accept choice, keep in command mode	Ctrl + y
Line numbers: absolute as in file / deactivate	:set nu :set nonu
Line numbers: relative to point / deactivate	:set rnu :setnornu
Line numbers: hybrid of above / deactivate	:set:nu rnu :set nonu nornu
Earlier, go back in time of file, 2 number of times	:earlier 2
Earlier, go back in time of file, {N} minutes before	:earlier {N}m
Make, run make by default or makeprg defined command	:make
Messages, Vim logs View	:messages
Lines, copy given line range, see :h cmdline-ranges	:copy or :t
Lines, move given line range	:norm
Normal mode commands execution	:move or :m

:copy, :move, :norm examples

• Copy previous 2 lines and current line: :-2,t
• Move line down: :m+1, move line up 2 :m-2
• Append \ to all lines in buffer: :%norm A\\
• In Python, comment all lines with the word print: :g/print/norm I#
• Find all lines with the pattern beg.*tab (e.g. \begin{tabular}) and go to line before and append \ to line: g/beg.*tab/norm kA\\
  • Find all the lines matching the pattern beg.*tab (a way for me to match \begin{tabular} without having to type the whole thing).
  • For each of those lines, go to the preceding line.
  • Append \ to that line.

1. Global :g examples - act on range, pattern and Ex execute command

   Source: Power of g - Vim Tips

   Description	Shortcut
   Global, act on range, pattern and execute command	:[range]g/pattern/cmd
   Global, Display context (5 lines) for all occurrences of a pattern	:g/pattern/z#.5
   Global, Delete all lines matching a pattern	:g/pattern/d
   Global, Delete all lines not matching a pattern	:g!/pattern/d or :g!/pattern/d
   Global, Delete all blank lines	:g/^$`/d
   Global, Copy all lines matching pattern to end of file	:g/pattern/t`$
   Global, Copy all lines matching a pattern to register ‘a’	qaq:g/pattern/y A
   Global, Fast Delete (do not copy) all lines matching a pattern	:g/pattern/d _

   See more with

   • :help ex-cmd-index provides a list of Ex commands.
   • :help 10.4 is the section of the user manual discussing the :global command.
   • :help multi-repeat talks about both the :g and :v commands.

Common VI Shortcuts

This first table per DevOps Bootcamp Series with Nana Janashia (DevOps Bootcamp with Nana)

Other table per vimtutor command

Description	Shortcut
Delete character at point	x
Delete line	dd
Delete 10 lines	d10, d
Delete all lines	:%d
Undo	u
Enter Insert mode, at beginning of line	I
Enter Insert mode, append text at end of character at point	a
Enter Insert mode, Append text at end of line, insert mode	A
Enter Insert mode, at new line below / above current one	o, O
Go to line 12, Go to line 100	12G, 100G or :100
Jump to beginning of line (bol)	0 / Home / ^ (soft)
Jump to end of line (eol)	$ / End
Jump history back, forward	C-o, C-i
Go to, beginning of file	gg
Go to, last selected text	gv
Go to file, url at point (open with system app)	gf , gx
Go to, end of file	G
Go to, last insert mode	gi
Replace all occurrences of stringold with new, new can be blank	:%s/stringold/new
Replace in region stringold with new, new can be blank	:’<,‘>s/stringold/new/g
Repeat last command, repeat macro (like command, inserts, combos)	.
Search: command history	q: (like C-f in command mode)

Editing

Description	Shortcut
Redo	Ctrl + r
Select, Start select - visual selection	v
Select, visual and selected area	v i <choose selection options>
Select, visual and text inside selected symbol	v i ], v i ’, v i “
Select, visual line mode	V
Select, visual block mode (rectangle mark)	C-v
Copy (yank) selection	y
Copy (yank) word	yw
Copy (yank inside) content inside quotations “	yi”
Copy (yank) entire line	yy
Copy (yank) entire file	:%y or gg v G, or :1,$y
Copy 1 to 10 lines of file	:1,10y
Put (paste deleted or copied text)	p
Case of character at point, toggle	~
Case of word, toggle	g~w
Case of inner tag selection, toggle	g~it
Join lines	J
Format, auto format	= =

• p can be combined with dd to delete and then paste the deleted line.

Registers

Source: :h registers, https://www.brianstorti.com/vim-registers/

Description	Shortcut
Registers mini-mode (insert mode)	C-r
Registers mini-mode (insert mode), paste (system clipboard)	+
Registers mini-mode (insert mode) paste from register ‘a’	C-r a
Register - access register at char ‘r‘	“r
Register - yank text to register ‘r‘	“ry
Register - paste text from register ‘r‘	“rp
Registers - List, last 0-9 registers are last yanked (copied) text	:reg
Registers - List	:reg a b c

1. 4 read only Registers

   Description	Shortcut
   Register: Last inserted text	”.
   Register: Current file path	”%
   Register: Last executed command	”:
   Register: Alternative file, like last edited file	”#

2. Expression and Search Registers

   Description	Shortcut
   Register: Expressions	”=
   Register: Search	”/

   1. Example use

      • ”. to write same text twice
      • ”% enter current file name in commands
      • ”: to re run the last command like :w
      • ”# is the file used with Ctrl + ^
      • #= used with results of expression, like in insert mode, do Ctrl+r = and do 2+2 <enter>, then 4 is printed. Or do Ctrl+r = and in the command do system('ls') <enter> and the output of the ls command is pasted in the buffer
      • ”/ to reuse the last searched word for another search and search and replace

3. Moving by Words (“web and WEB”) and Lines

   Description	Shortcut
   Move one word forward / after whitespace	w / W
   Move one word backward / after whitespace	b / B
   Move to end of word / after whitespace	e / E
   Move to word after next whitespace	W
   Move to end of line	$
   Move to beginning of line	0

   • Specifically, a capital W will move to just after the next whitespace character, where a lowercase w will use other forms of punctuation to delimit a word.

   1. Listing 9. Example Method Call and usage of web and WEB

      Source: Chapter 3: Getting Around - LazyVim for Ambitious Developers

      myObj.methodName("foo", "bar", "baz")
      -----ww---------w-w--w--ww--w--ww--w---->
      ------------------------W------W-------->

      Description	Shortcut
      Replace character at point	r + <character to replace>
      Replace mode (like Insert mode, delete replaced characters)	R

      v visual selection can be combined with commands d for delete, y for copy, c for change

4. Open lines

   Description	Shortcut
   Open line below cursor, insert mode	o
   Open line above cursor	O

5. Files

   Description	Shortcut
   Save selected lines to file FILENAME	:w FILENAME

6. Combination Commands

   Description	Shortcut
   Replace content between symbols	di + <symbol> like di”
   Cut content between symbols	ci + <symbol> like ci(
   Swap lines up and down (delete line, paste it)	ddp
   Delete entire document - G from first line, gg from last line	dG or dgg
   Auto indent entire document	gg=G

Movement and Search

1. Movement

   Description	Shortcut
   Jump # of times using hjkl cursor	10j / #j
   Page Up	Ctrl + b
   Page Down	Ctrl + f
   Half page up	Ctrl + u
   Half page down	Ctrl + d
   Move cursor top, middle, bottom of screen	(Shift) H, M, L
   z mini mode: Move screen and leave cursor, top, bottom, middle	zt, zb, zz
   Search word at point	*
   Begin/End of sentence	( / )
   Begin/End of paragraph	{ / }
   Find mode, character, move to next match	f <char>
   Find mode, move to next match of pattern	;
   Find mode (til / until), character, move to before it	t <char>
   Navigation Previous, method start	[m
   Navigation Previous, method end	[M
   Navigation Previous, ( or { or <	[( or [{ or [<
   Navigation Next )	])
   Navigation Previous, Spelling error	[s
   Navigation Next, Spelling error	]s

2. Search and Replace

   Description	Shortcut
   Search text in file forwards	/ + <phrase> + Enter
   Search next / previous	n / N
   Search text in file backwards	? + <phrase> + Enter
   Find matching bracket	%
   Change text in brackets	ci[ or ci] or ci{
   Search x and Replace with y in entire file	:%s/x/y/g

   1. Search and Replace Command Mode

      • To substitute new for the first old in a line type :s/old/new
      • To substitute new for all ‘old’s on a line type :s/old/new/g
      • To substitute phrases between two line #‘s type :#,#s/old/new/g
      • To substitute all occurrences in the file type :%s/old/new/g
      • To ask for confirmation each time add ‘c’ :%s/old/new/gc

      1. Using do commands

         Source: Search and replace in multiple files - Vim Tips Wiki

         • :argdo: (all files in argument list)
         • :bufdo (all buffers)
         • :tabdo (all tabs)
         • :windo (all windows in current tab)
         • :cdo (all files listed in quickfix list)

         vim command mode:

         # Search and replace in all open buffers from :ls
         :bufdo %s/pattern/replace/ge | update
         
         # Explanation
         # bufdo     Apply the following commands to all buffers.
         # %s    Search and replace all lines in the buffer.
         # pattern   Search pattern.
         # replace   Replacement text.
         # g     Change all occurrences in each line (global).
         # e     No error if the pattern is not found.
         # |     Separator between commands.
         # update    Save (write file only if changes were made).
         
         # Suppose all *.cpp and *.h files in the current directory need to be changed (not subdirectories)
         # use the argument list (arglist):
         :arg *.cpp  All *.cpp files in current directory.
         :argadd *.h     And all *.h files.
         :arg    Optional: Display the current arglist.
         :argdo %s/pattern/replace/ge | update   Search and replace in all files in arglist.
         
         # Search and replace, change, with all files
         :arg **/*.cpp   All *.cpp files in and below current directory.
         :argadd **/*.h  And all *.h files.
         ...     As above, use :arg to list files, or :argdo to change.
         
         # Replace current word
         :arg **/*.cpp   All *.cpp files in and below current directory.
         :argadd **/*.h  And all *.h files.
         ...     As above, use :arg to list files, or :argdo to change.

3. Tags

   Description	Shortcut
   Find tag	C-]
   Find ambiguous tag	g C-]
   Jump back in tag jump stack	C-t

Deletions

Using d delete operator and a motion that the operator will operate on

Description	Shortcut
Delete word with first character at point	dw
Delete to end of line	d$
Delete to end of current word	de

1. Delete with Counts

   Description	Shortcut
   Delete 2 words from point	d2w / d#w
   Delete 2 / # of lines	2dd / #dd

2. Change Operator

   Delete and make changes

   Description	Shortcut
   Delete to end of word and insert mode	ce
   Delete line and insert mode	cc
   Delete line to end from point and insert	c$

Counts for a motion

Description	Shortcut
Move cursor 2 / # words forward	2w / #w
Move cursor 2 / # words backward	2b / #b
Move curse to end of 3 / # forward	3e / #e

Macro

Source: :h recording, https://www.redhat.com/sysadmin/use-vim-macros and https://www.brianstorti.com/vim-registers/

• To record a macro and save it to a register, type the key q followed by a letter from a to z that represents the register to save the macro, followed by all commands you want to record, and then type the key q again to stop the recording.

• q<register><commands>q

• Execute macro: @

• Repeat last macro: @@

• Example to store macro in register a, go down and delete line: qajddq

1. Macros are just text and can be edited, examples

   • Add a semicolon to end of the w macro :let @W=‘i;’
     • W in uppercase means append value to the register
   • Edit the register :let @w ‘<Ctrl-r w> and change what you want and close the quotes
   • Copy ivim is awesome into the clipboard register ”+ and execute @”+

2. Sample Key Combinations

   Delete lines containing a string in a file

   :g/<your_string>/d

   • :g Prepare to execute a command globally (on all lines that match a certain pattern).
   • /<your_string> Start specifying the pattern to match <your_string>. Replace this with the string you want to delete lines based on.
   • / End specifying the pattern to match.
   • d The command to execute on all lines that match the pattern. In this case, delete those lines.

Marks (Bookmarks)

Source: Using Marks - Vim Tips Wiki

Description	Shortcut
Mark place in file	m <lower case letter>
Mark place in file to access in any file	m <upper case letter>
Marks, normal mode, go to mark	` <mark letter>
Marks, list marks	:marks

Fold

Description	Shortcut
Fold, open	zo
Fold, close	zc

Insert (Edit) Mode

Editing

Description	Shortcut
Delete word at point	C-w
Delete character at point	C-h
Run normal mode command, then run command	C-o

Completion (Autocomplete) in Insert Mode

Description	Shortcut
Completion, (autocomplete)	C-n or C-p
Completion, anything from file	C-x C-n
Completion, on filenames	C-x C-f
Completion, on tags	C-x C-]
Completion, anything with ‘complete’ option	C-n

Status, External, Spell Commands

Description	Shortcut
Show file location and status	Ctrl + g
Retrieve and place in buffer	r <file or external command>
Spell check	:set spell

External Commands

Description	Shortcut
Execute shell command	:!<command>

1. External Command Examples

   # Execute shell command to list directory, then press enter to return to vim
   !ls
   
   # Get command output of {cmd} and place in buffer
   :r !{cmd}
   # Place date in buffer
   :r !date
   
   # Get file and place in buffer
   :r {file}
   
   # Replace current line with output of shell
   # Example use: decoding strings, formatting text like json, using . for the current line
   :.!{cmd}
   # Replace entire buffer with command output, using % for entire
   :%!{cmd}
   # Replace a selection with the output of a shell command
   # Example use: sorting, complex text changes
   :'<,'>!{cmd}
   #### Sort entire buffer
   :% !sort
   
   # Send current buffer as input to a command
   :w !{cmd}
   
   ## Practical Examples
   
   ### Backup a file
   :!cp % %.bak
   
   ### Insert External Data
   #### Date
   :r !date
   
   ### Buffer as command input
   #### Create files listed in the buffer
   :w !xargs touch
   
   #### Decode base64 string on current line and replace the line in buffer
   :.!base64 -d
   #### Format current line json
   :.!jq .
   
   #### Sort selection
   :'<,'>!sort
   
   #### Sort case insensitive
   :'<,'>!sort i

   1. Key binding

      Execute current line and output the result to the command line. Execute in bash and see result in Vim

      vim.keymap.set(“n”, “<leader>ex”, “:.w !bash -e<cr>”, opts)

      Execute file and see results in Vim

      vim.keymap.set(“n”, “<leader>eX”, ”:%w !bash -e<cr>”, opts)

      6 Practical External Command Tricks: Level Up Your Neo(vim) Skills

Window management and movement

Description	Shortcut
Move to next window	Ctrl + w Ctrl + w
Switch to windows by direction	Ctrl + w, hjkl
Split frame, horiztonal (top, down)	C-w, s
Split frame, vertical (left, right)	C-w, v
Close split frame	C-w c
Close window	:q
Zoom in / Zoom out	Ctrl + Shift + - / Ctrl + Shift + =

Buffers

Description	Shortcut
List buffers	ls
Switch buffers	:bnext :bprevious :bp
Switch buffers by number or (partial) name	:b <number or name or partial unique name>
Switch buffers - see also Navigation previous, next	[b , ]b
Buffer Forward	Ctrl + i
Buffer Back	Ctrl + o , Ctrl + ^
Buffer back to last buffer, alternate buffers	Ctrl + ^ (Ctrl + Shift + 6, sometimes Ctrl + 6)
Refresh buffer	:e
Close buffer	:bd

Tabs

Description	Shortcut
Edit/Open in new tab	:tabe example.txt
Open current buffer in new tab	:tabnew %
Close tab	:tabc (close)
Close all other tabs except current	:tabo (only)
Next tab	gt
Prior tab	gT
Numbered tab	nnngt
list all tabs	:tabs

Help

Description	Shortcut
Help	:help or :h
Help key	F1
Help on command	:help <command>
Help on a key in normal mode	:help <key>
Help on a key in insert mode	:help i_<key>
Help on a key in command mode	:help c_<key>
Help, search for a word	:helpgrep <word>
Documentation at point	K
Documentation at point, enter docs buffer	Ctrl + w, Ctrl + w

Terminal

Description	Shortcut
Open terminal	:term
Exit to Normal mode	Ctrl-\ Ctrl-N
Bring up/Hide open terminal	C-/

• Tip on switching to terminal on Unix/Linux:
  • Ctrl + z to have vim go into background and bring up terminal
  • fg to resume vim

Sessions

Description	Shortcut
Suspend vim, go back to terminal	C-z
Suspend vim, from terminal return to vim	Type fg in terminal + enter
Save a session to file	mksession session.vim
Load a session from file	source session.vim

See Also

• DevOps Bootcamp Techworld with Nana - DevOps Bootcamp Series with Nana Janashia
• Neovim Shortcuts - Neovim Shortcuts

Resources

• vimtutor command tutorial in terminal
• LazyVim for Ambitious Developers, Vim, Neovim, Lazyvim Guide