How to Open Programs with Keyboard Shortcuts in Windows 10

by Muhammad Imran Habib · December 12, 2020

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Why use your mouse (or your voice) when you can use your keyboard?

You may open any programs by clicking the start button, and rolling your mouse pointer to the program icon. You may also use Cortana to open the programs or apps.

If you are not comfortable with using the mouse or voice commands we would recommend that you use the quickest way to start any program and that is by using a keyboard shortcut. Windows 10 allows you to create shortcuts for any program or app.

You can create custom keyboard shortcuts for your applications. In this article, we will discuss how to create keyboard shortcuts for programs and apps in Windows 10.

For the native windows applications (like calculator, calendar, etc.)

Open Programs with Keyboard Shortcuts in Windows 10

Click the start button or hit the windows key on your keyboard.

Locate the application for which you want to create a keyboard shortcut and drag the app icon and drop it on to your desktop; this will create the app shortcut on your desktop.

Now right click on the shortcut icon of your app and click on the properties.

In the properties window, make sure you are in the Shortcut tab. Locate the Shortcut key option and click the box next to it. Now tap your desired shortcut key. If you press “C” the shortcut will be “Ctrl+Alt+C”. Now click on the Apply button and then click the OK button.

For the Non-Native windows applications

Locate the application in the start menu and right-click the app icon. Rollover your mouse pointer to the “More” option. From the sub-menu click on “Open File Location.

You will reach the shortcut of the application. Now you follow the same steps as above. After allocating the shortcut key when you click the Apply button, an “Access Denied” prompt will pop up. Click Continue to grant administrator permission. Click OK to close the properties window.

Now you can test your keyboard shortcut to open up the program.

Note: Make sure that you do not use the same key shortcut twice. Also, keep in mind that some applications may use the same shortcuts for in-app operations. For example, in MS Word, Ctrl+Alt+M opens up the New Comment command.