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Qwen Code CLI reference - Keyboard shortcuts

Qwen Code keyboard shortcuts

Qwen Code documents 36 keyboard shortcuts, including Esc, Ctrl+C and Ctrl+D. These work inside the Qwen Code terminal UI. Each row gives the docs' description, accepted values and an example where one is documented.

Last verified 1 official pageFull Qwen Code reference

Qwen Code keyboard shortcuts
ShortcutDescription
Esc

Close dialogs and suggestions; with an empty prompt, cancel an ongoing request.

Docs: Esc
Ctrl+C

Cancel the ongoing request and clear the input. Press twice to exit the application.

Docs: Ctrl+C
Ctrl+D

Exit the application if the input is empty. Press twice to confirm.

Docs: Ctrl+D
Ctrl+L

Clear the screen.

Docs: Ctrl+L
Ctrl+O / Alt/Option+T

Toggle expanded detail mode: expand or collapse all thinking blocks and tool outputs inline.

Docs: Ctrl+O / Alt/Option+T
Ctrl+S

Stashes non-empty input for the current project and restores it on the next launch.

Docs: Ctrl+S
Ctrl+T

Toggle the display of tool descriptions.

Docs: Ctrl+T
Alt/Option+M

Toggle Markdown output between rich rendered previews and raw/source mode.

Docs: Alt/Option+M
Shift+Tab (Tab on Windows)

Cycle approval modes (plan, default, auto-edit, auto, yolo).

Docs: Shift+Tab (Tab on Windows)
!

Toggle shell mode when the input is empty.

Docs: !
?

Toggle keyboard shortcuts display when the input is empty.

Docs: ?
/

Open slash-command completion.

Docs: /
@

Open completion for files, folders, and other context.

Docs: @
Space (empty prompt)

Start voice dictation when it and a voice model are configured.

Docs: Space (empty prompt)
Ctrl+Enter / Cmd+Enter / Shift+Enter / Ctrl+J

Insert a newline.

Docs: Ctrl+Enter / Cmd+Enter / Shift+Enter / Ctrl+J
Enter

Submit the current prompt. While a response is running, steer the current turn.

Docs: Enter
Ctrl+Q

Queue the current prompt or command for the next turn instead of steering.

Docs: Ctrl+Q
Up Arrow (at the top) / Esc

When queued messages are present, move them back into the input for editing.

Docs: Up Arrow (at the top) / Esc
Tab

Autocomplete the current suggestion if one exists.

Docs: Tab
Ctrl+C

Clear the input prompt.

Docs: Ctrl+C
Ctrl+R

Reverse search through input/shell history.

Docs: Ctrl+R
Ctrl+Y

Retry the last failed request.

Docs: Ctrl+Y
Ctrl+V / Option+V (Windows: Alt+V)

Paste clipboard content; an image is saved and a reference to it is inserted in the prompt.

Docs: Ctrl+V / Option+V (Windows: Alt+V)
Ctrl+X

Open the current input in an external editor.

Docs: Ctrl+X
Ctrl+Z

Undo the last input edit.

Docs: Ctrl+Z
Ctrl+Shift+Z

Redo the last undone input edit.

Docs: Ctrl+Shift+Z
Ctrl+K

Delete from the cursor to the end of the line.

Docs: Ctrl+K
Ctrl+U

Delete from the cursor to the beginning of the line.

Docs: Ctrl+U
Ctrl+F

Toggle keyboard focus between the running foreground shell and the prompt.

Docs: Ctrl+F
Ctrl+Shift+Up / Ctrl+Shift+Down

Scroll the focused shell up or down.

Docs: Ctrl+Shift+Up / Ctrl+Shift+Down
Ctrl+B

Promote the foreground shell to a background task.

Docs: Ctrl+B
Shift+Up

Scroll history up one line (when ui.useTerminalBuffer is enabled).

Docs: Shift+Up
Shift+Down

Scroll history down one line.

Docs: Shift+Down
Ctrl+Home

Jump to the top of the conversation.

Docs: Ctrl+Home
Ctrl+End

Jump to the bottom (and re-engage live auto-follow).

Docs: Ctrl+End
Ctrl+G

See context CLI received from IDE.

Docs: Ctrl+G

The rest of the Qwen Code reference

FAQ

How many keyboard shortcuts does Qwen Code have?

The official Qwen Code docs list 36 keyboard shortcuts, including Esc, Ctrl+C and Ctrl+D. All of them are in the table above, in the docs' order.

What does Esc do in Qwen Code?

Close dialogs and suggestions; with an empty prompt, cancel an ongoing request.

Where are Qwen Code keyboard shortcuts documented?

On 1 official docs page at qwenlm.github.io, last read on October 17, 2026. Every row in the table links the exact section it came from.

Sources

Last verified . Names and examples are copied verbatim from the official page below, and every row above links the exact section it came from.

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