Audacity Shortcuts to Expand or Contract Selection

This guide details the standard keyboard shortcuts used to expand and contract audio selections in Audacity on Windows, Linux, and macOS. Using these dedicated key combinations allows you to adjust the boundaries of your selected audio range with precision, bypassing the need for manual mouse adjustments.

Expanding an Audio Selection

To make your selected audio region longer by moving its outer boundaries outward:

• Expand Selection to the Left:

  • Windows / Linux: Shift + Left Arrow
  • macOS: Shift + Left Arrow
  • Effect: Moves the start point of the selection further to the left, capturing earlier audio.

• Expand Selection to the Right:

  • Windows / Linux: Shift + Right Arrow
  • macOS: Shift + Right Arrow
  • Effect: Moves the end point of the selection further to the right, capturing later audio.

Contracting an Audio Selection

To make your selected audio region shorter by moving its boundaries inward:

• Contract Selection from the Left:

  • Windows / Linux: Ctrl + Shift + Right Arrow
  • macOS: Cmd + Shift + Right Arrow
  • Effect: Shifts the start point of the selection to the right, trimming audio from the beginning of the selection.

• Contract Selection from the Right:

  • Windows / Linux: Ctrl + Shift + Left Arrow
  • macOS: Cmd + Shift + Left Arrow
  • Effect: Shifts the end point of the selection to the left, trimming audio from the end of the selection.

Selection Step Sizes

The exact amount of audio added or subtracted with each keystroke depends on your current view:

• Zoom-Dependent Step: The step size scales with your current zoom level. Zooming in closer allows for micro-adjustments and sample-accurate selection changes, while zooming out adjusts larger blocks of time.
• Large Steps: To move selection boundaries by larger increments regardless of current zoom, you can customize or map dedicated large-step shortcuts under Edit > Preferences > Keyboard.