Tabby Keybindings

Configure keyboard shortcuts and multi-chord keybindings in Tabby terminal.

Hotkey Configuration

Define custom keybindings in config.yaml under the hotkeys section:

yaml

hotkeys:
  new-tab:
    - "Ctrl+Shift+T"
  close-tab:
    - "Ctrl+Shift+W"
  toggle-fullscreen:
    - "F11"
  split-right:
    - "Ctrl+Shift+D"
  split-bottom:
    - "Ctrl+Shift+E"
  focus-next-pane:
    - "Ctrl+Shift+ArrowRight"
  focus-previous-pane:
    - "Ctrl+Shift+ArrowLeft"

Multi-Chord Shortcuts

Tabby supports multi-chord key combinations (pressing sequences):

yaml

hotkeys:
  # Press Ctrl+K then Ctrl+C
  custom-action:
    - "Ctrl+K Ctrl+C"

Available Actions

Tab Management

Action	Default	Description
`new-tab`	Ctrl+Shift+T	Open new tab
`close-tab`	Ctrl+Shift+W	Close current tab
`next-tab`	Ctrl+Tab	Switch to next tab
`previous-tab`	Ctrl+Shift+Tab	Switch to previous tab
`tab-1` through `tab-9`	Ctrl+1-9	Jump to specific tab
`duplicate-tab`	-	Duplicate current tab

Pane Management

Action	Default	Description
`split-right`	Ctrl+Shift+D	Split pane right
`split-bottom`	Ctrl+Shift+E	Split pane bottom
`focus-next-pane`	-	Focus next split pane
`focus-previous-pane`	-	Focus previous split pane
`close-pane`	-	Close current pane
`maximize-pane`	-	Maximize/restore pane

Window Management

Action	Default	Description
`toggle-fullscreen`	F11	Toggle fullscreen
`toggle-window`	-	Toggle window visibility (global hotkey)
`zoom-in`	Ctrl+=	Increase font size
`zoom-out`	Ctrl+-	Decrease font size
`reset-zoom`	Ctrl+0	Reset font size

Terminal Operations

Action	Default	Description
`copy`	Ctrl+Shift+C	Copy selection
`paste`	Ctrl+Shift+V	Paste clipboard
`select-all`	-	Select all terminal content
`clear`	-	Clear terminal
`search`	Ctrl+Shift+F	Open search
`settings`	Ctrl+,	Open settings

SSH/Connection Actions

Action	Default	Description
`reconnect-tab`	-	Reconnect current SSH/serial session
`disconnect-tab`	-	Disconnect current session
`launch-winscp`	-	Open session in WinSCP (Windows)

Key Syntax

Tabby uses a readable key format:

•Modifiers: Ctrl, Shift, Alt, Meta (Cmd on macOS)
•Special keys: ArrowUp, ArrowDown, ArrowLeft, ArrowRight, Enter, Backspace, Delete, Escape, Tab, Space, F1-F12
•Regular keys: A-Z, 0-9
•Combine with +: Ctrl+Shift+T
•Multi-chord with space: Ctrl+K Ctrl+C

Platform Differences

Platform	Primary Modifier
Windows	`Ctrl`
macOS	`Meta` (Cmd)
Linux	`Ctrl`

Example platform-aware config:

yaml

hotkeys:
  copy:
    - "Ctrl+Shift+C"
    - "Meta+C"          # macOS alternative
  paste:
    - "Ctrl+Shift+V"
    - "Meta+V"          # macOS alternative

Multiple keybindings can be assigned to the same action as a list.

Global Hotkey

Configure a system-wide hotkey to toggle Tabby visibility:

yaml

hotkeys:
  toggle-window:
    - "Ctrl+Space"      # Global hotkey to show/hide Tabby

This works even when Tabby is not focused (Quake console mode).

Settings UI

Keybindings can also be configured through Settings > Hotkeys in the Tabby UI, which provides a visual editor for all available actions.

Reload After Changes

After modifying keybindings in config.yaml, restart Tabby or reload with Ctrl+Shift+R.