cheatkeys.com

What is CheatKeys?

CheatKeys is a Windows utility that shows you the active keyboard shortcuts for whatever app you're currently using. Hold the CTRL key a little longer than usual and a cheat sheet appears; release it and the list hides. The trigger key and hold duration are customizable, and a global hotkey can toggle the window instead.

What it covers

• Pre-loaded shortcuts for a range of popular Windows apps, including Slack, Evernote, Visual Studio Code, Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Word.
• Your own entries for any application, even ones not officially supported.
• Customization of shortcuts for supported apps, so the displayed list can match your own workflow.
• Interface options: system, light or dark theme, plus in-app update notifications.

Who it suits

It is aimed at people who work across several shortcut-heavy apps and don't want to memorize or look up each app's key combinations. A designer switching between Photoshop and Slack, or a writer moving between Word and Outlook, gets a single consistent gesture for "what can I press here?" rather than a different reference for each program.

The trade-off is that its value depends on how much you rely on keyboard shortcuts in the first place; occasional users may find a hold-to-reveal panel less useful than simply learning a handful of keys. The ability to add your own shortcuts is the feature most likely to keep it relevant for niche or older apps that aren't on the supported list.

Try it

The site offers a beta download (v1.1.29) and a separate purchase page, so check the current licensing terms before committing. A practical first step: install it, open the app you use most, and hold CTRL to see whether the pre-loaded list matches the shortcuts you actually use—then add or edit entries from there.

How does holding the CTRL key reveal shortcuts, and can I change the trigger key or duration?

Holding CTRL in CheatKeys shows the shortcuts for whatever Windows app is currently in front of you: keep the key held a little longer than a normal tap, an overlay appears with that app's active shortcuts, and releasing the key hides it again. The point is to avoid leaving the keyboard or hunting through menus mid-task.

Changing the trigger

Yes, both parts are adjustable. According to the site, the trigger key and the hold duration are customizable, so you can move the trigger off CTRL if it clashes with your own shortcuts, and lengthen the delay if you keep triggering the overlay by accident. If a hold feels awkward, you can instead set a global hotkey that toggles the overlay on and off.

What you can put in the overlay

• Pre-loaded shortcuts for popular apps such as Slack, Evernote, Visual Studio Code, Photoshop, Outlook and Word, ready out of the box.
• Your own entries for any app, including ones that aren't officially supported.
• Edits to existing shortcuts, so the list reflects how you actually work rather than the defaults.

Practical trade-offs

The overlay is most useful for shortcut-heavy tools like VS Code or Photoshop, where the list is long and easy to forget. In apps you use rarely, a pre-loaded list may be thin, so the manual-entry feature does more of the work. A short hold delay reduces accidental pop-ups but makes the gesture feel slower; a long one feels snappier but fires more often. If you already know your main app's shortcuts cold, the benefit is mostly in unfamiliar apps and in documenting your own custom bindings.

A sensible first step: install it, pick a trigger that doesn't collide with your editor's keybindings, and add your own shortcuts for your most-used app so the overlay is accurate from day one. The site lists a beta download and a separate purchase page, so check the current version and terms there before relying on it daily.

Which Windows applications already come with pre-loaded shortcuts in CheatKeys?

The page names a few apps with shortcuts pre-loaded, but it does not publish a complete list. The apps it explicitly names are Slack, Evernote, Visual Studio Code, Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft Outlook, and Microsoft Word, followed by “And many more!”. So treat those six as confirmed examples rather than the full set.

What this means in practice

• The named apps are the safe bet. If your day is mostly Word, Outlook, Slack, VS Code, Photoshop, or Evernote, you can expect shortcuts to appear out of the box.
• Everything else is uncertain. For apps outside that list, the site offers two fallbacks: request support for a future release from inside the app, or add your own shortcuts manually for any application, even unsupported ones.

How to decide

If your main work app is not among the six named, plan on entering your own shortcut list first. That path still works, but it costs some setup time before you get the hold-CTRL-to-see-shortcuts benefit. If you want to confirm coverage before installing, check the Supported Apps section on CheatKeys for the current list, since the page indicates the set grows over time.

How do I add or customize shortcuts for an app that CheatKeys doesn't officially support?

Use CheatKeys' Add Your Own Shortcuts feature: open the app you want to document, add its shortcuts manually in CheatKeys, and they'll appear in the overlay alongside (or instead of) the pre-loaded lists. The same editor lets you change shortcuts for officially supported apps, so an unsupported app is treated as a blank entry rather than a blocked one.

A practical workflow

1. Launch the target app and open its own shortcut reference (Help menu, documentation, or preferences) to gather the real key combinations.
2. In CheatKeys, add a new app entry and enter each shortcut with its description, matching the format used for supported apps.
3. Keep the list tight — the overlay is most useful when it shows the 10–20 commands you actually forget, not every command the app has.
4. Test the trigger: hold CTRL (or your chosen key) while the app is focused and confirm the list appears and hides on release.

What to expect, and the trade-offs

The main limitation is upkeep: manually entered shortcuts go stale when the app adds or renames commands, so revisit the list after major updates. If a popular app is missing, the built-in request option is the lower-effort route — your custom entry works immediately in the meantime. For a broader look at shortcut-reference tools, CheatKeys is the product page itself, and general shortcut references such as Microsoft Support are useful sources when compiling entries for Microsoft apps.

Decision criterion: if you use one or two niche apps daily, a hand-built list is worth ten minutes of setup; if you need coverage across many apps, rely on the pre-loaded set and request additions instead.

Is CheatKeys free, or do I need to purchase a license to use it?

CheatKeys is not presented as a free tool: the site includes a Purchase link, which indicates a paid license is required to use it. The download is labelled “v1.1.29 beta,” but the page does not state whether that beta is free, trial-based or requires payment up front. So the safe assumption is that you should expect to buy a license, while confirming the exact terms on the purchase page before installing.

What to check before deciding

• Whether the beta is unrestricted: if the download works without a key, you can test the hold-CTRL shortcut overlay on your own apps first.
• License scope: whether one purchase covers a single PC or several, since this is a desktop utility you may want on a work and home machine.
• Refund or trial terms: useful if the trigger-key approach does not suit your typing habits.

A practical example: if you mainly want shortcut reminders for Outlook, Word and VS Code, install the beta, hold CTRL a little longer in each app, and see whether the overlay is quick enough to be worth paying for. If it is, buy the license; if not, you have lost nothing but a few minutes.

For comparison, free alternatives exist, such as CheatKeys itself for its supported-app list, and general shortcut references like Microsoft Support for Office shortcuts. The trade-off is convenience: a reference page is free but requires switching windows, while CheatKeys shows shortcuts in place for a fee.

How do I request support for a new app and set up a global hotkey to toggle the shortcut overlay?

Request a new app directly from inside CheatKeys: the site says an unsupported app can be requested for a future release by clicking the request option in the app itself. For the overlay, open Preferences and set a global hotkey to show/hide CheatKeys; the same area lets you customize the trigger key and how long you hold it.

Requesting a new app

• Open CheatKeys and look for the "request new app support" option; the site describes this as a click-to-request action from within the tool.
• Name the app clearly if the request form asks, so it can be matched to the supported-apps list (Slack, Evernote, Visual Studio Code, Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Word, and others).
• If you need the shortcuts before official support arrives, use "Add Your Own Shortcuts," which the site says works for any application, even unsupported ones.

Setting the global hotkey

1. Open CheatKeys preferences.
2. Find the global hotkey setting for show/hide.
3. Choose a combination that doesn't collide with shortcuts in your daily apps—avoid common ones in Visual Studio Code or Photoshop, for example.
4. Test it in a few apps: press the hotkey to show the overlay, press again to hide it.

The default behavior is hold-to-show: hold CTRL (or your chosen key) a bit longer and release to hide. The global hotkey is the toggle alternative, and the site says both the trigger key and duration are customizable.

Choosing between the two triggers

A practical next step: pick an uncommon hotkey such as Ctrl+Alt+Shift+H, set the hold duration to roughly half a second, then check both in Word and in a browser. If a shortcut you rely on is missing, add it manually first and file the app request second.