The command palette and keyboard shortcuts
Jump anywhere in Chord with ⌘K, switch sections with ⌘1–⌘8, and move through lists with the arrow keys.
Last updated October 23, 2026
Chord is built to be opened, glanced at, and closed without touching the mouse.
Open the palette
Press ⌘K from anywhere. Type part of a command name — the search is fuzzy, so "bs" finds Balance Sheet and "fx" finds the FX actions — then press ↑/↓ to choose and Return to run it. Typical commands: go to a section, add a transaction, import a statement, record an FX rate, set a budget, switch profile.
If the command belongs to another section, Chord switches there first. Press ⌘/ at any time for the full keyboard cheat sheet.
Section shortcuts
⌘1–⌘8 switch top-level sections by their sidebar position:
| Keys | Section |
|---|---|
| ⌘1 | Home |
| ⌘2 | Accounts |
| ⌘3 | Holdings |
| ⌘4 | Reports |
| ⌘5 | Budget |
| ⌘6 | Import |
| ⌘7 | Rules |
| ⌘8 | FX |
| Keys | Where |
|---|---|
| ⌘K | Command palette |
| ⌘/ | Keyboard cheat sheet |
| ⌘1–⌘8 | Jump to a section by position |
| ⇧⌘D | Toggle light / dark |
| Esc or ⌘. | Cancel |
| ⌘↩ | Save a form |
Contextual keys
A few chords mean the natural thing in whichever section is showing:
| Keys | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ⌘N | New … (position on Holdings, account on Accounts, transaction on the register) |
| ⇧⌘N | New alternate |
| ⌘R | Refresh (prices, FX, the current view) |
| ⌘E | Edit / rename |
| ⇧⌘E | Archive / restore (Accounts) |
| ⌘F | Find |
Global actions work from anywhere:
| Keys | Action |
|---|---|
| ⌘I | Import a statement |
| ⇧⌘I | Import GnuCash accounts |
| ⌥⌘R | New rule |
| ⌥⌘X | Record an FX rate |
In lists
- ↑/↓ move, ⇧↑/⇧↓ extend the selection.
- ⌘A selects all, Return opens or edits, ⌘⌫ deletes, Esc clears.
A few common flows
- Glance at net worth — open Chord; Home is already the number. Close.
- Categorise the queue — ⌘K → Import, route the parked lines, ⌘↩ to commit. See Importing a QFX file from your bank.
- Import this month's QFX — ⌘I, pick the file, confirm.
- Switch books — ⌘K, type the profile name.
Related
Still stuck?
Email [email protected] with your macOS version and what you were doing.