Keyboard Shortcuts not working in Excel or Word

If the Keyboard shortcuts and hotkeys are not working in Excel or Word, then you can try the solutions mentioned in this article to fix this issue. Keyboard shortcuts enable you to perform specific commands quickly without going through various options. However, some users have reportedly encountered this issue where they cannot use keyboard shortcut keys in the Word or Excel application. If you are also facing the same problem, here are some fixes that you can try to resolve the issue.

Keyboard Shortcuts not working in Excel or Word

The solutions to fix the keyboard shortcut keys not working problem in Word or Excel are:

Check if the Keyboard Shortcuts are working or not elsewhere
Reset Keyboard Shortcuts.
Check by running Word in safe mode and disabling add-ins.
Repair Microsoft Office application.

Let’s discuss these in detail.

1] Check if the Keyboard Shortcuts are not working anywhere else

Are the keyboard shortcuts not working only in Microsoft Excel or Word? Or are they not working in other applications in Windows, too? Try using hotkeys in Windows generally and see if they are working fine or not.

If not, you can see this post to fix keyboard shortcuts. To begin with, run the Keyboard troubleshooter, check the keyboard physically, reset the keyboard, etc.

2] Reset Keyboard Shortcuts

If no standard keyboard shortcut is working in Word or Excel, try resetting keyboard shortcuts. It may help you fix the issue. To do so, you can follow below steps:

Launch Word or Excel and go to the File > Options menu. In the Options window, move to the Customize Ribbon tab. Here, you will see Customize button present beside the Keyboard Shortcut option. Click on this option and then in the next dialog window, tap on the Reset All option.

Next, confirm the reset process and all your keyboard shortcuts will be reset to default. Then, check if you can use your standard hotkeys.

You can reassign the shortcut keys for commands in Word or Excel using the same Customize option.

3] Check by running Word or Excel in Safe mode and disable add-ins

Sometimes the bugs in applications arise due to problematic add-ins that you have installed. The same can be the reason for keyboard shortcuts not working in Word. So, restart Microsoft Word or Excel in safe mode and then see if you are able to use the keyboard shortcuts.

To start Word in safe mode, open Run (Windows+R) and then type and enter winword /safe. For Excel, use excel /safe.

If you are able to use keyboard shortcut keys in Safe mode, the problem is most probably with an installed add-in. So, launch Word or Excel normally and then disable add-ins using below steps:

Go to the File menu and click on Options.
Select the Add-ins tab and press the Go button present beside the Manage COM Add-ins option.
Now, uncheck the installed add-ins to disable them and then click on the OK button.
Restart Word or Excel and see if you are able to use keyboard shortcuts like before.

4] Repair Ofice software

If nothing seems to work to fix this issue, repair the Microsoft Office application. If the problem lies with the app installation or module update, this method should work.

Just open the Settings app and then click on the Apps category. Now, from Apps & features tab, scroll down to the Microsoft Office app and then tap on it. You will see a Modify option below it; click on it and then choose from Quick Repair and Online Repair options and press the Repair button to start the process.

After Windows repairs the Office applications, check whether keyboard shortcuts are working.

I hope this article helps you fix the keyboard shortcuts not working issue in Office.