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cmux is designed for keyboard-driven workflows. All shortcuts are customizable in Settings → Keyboard Shortcuts.

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Workspaces

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Surfaces (tabs within workspace)

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Split panes

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Browser

Browser shortcuts follow Safari defaults and are customizable in Settings → Keyboard Shortcuts.

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Notifications

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Find

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Terminal

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Window

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Customizing shortcuts

Change any shortcut in Settings → Keyboard Shortcuts:
  1. Open Settings (⌘ ,)
  2. Navigate to Keyboard Shortcuts
  3. Click the shortcut button next to the action you want to change
  4. Press your desired key combination
  5. Press Esc to cancel or click away to save
Keyboard shortcuts require at least one modifier key (Command, Option, Shift, or Control). Plain letter keys without modifiers are not allowed.

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Shortcut conflicts

cmux does not validate for conflicts when you customize shortcuts. If you assign the same shortcut to multiple actions:
  • The first matching action in the responder chain wins
  • Terminal shortcuts generally have lower priority than app-level shortcuts
  • You may need to resolve conflicts manually

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Resetting shortcuts

Reset shortcuts to defaults:
  • Click “Reset All” in Settings → Keyboard Shortcuts to restore all defaults
  • Reset individual shortcuts by editing and pressing Backspace

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Arrow key modifiers

Arrow key shortcuts use special handling:
  • ⌥ ⌘ ← → ↑ ↓: Focus pane directionally
  • Plain arrow keys are passed to the terminal for shell navigation

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Tab navigation shortcuts

The Tab key (⌃ Tab) cycles through surfaces, not workspaces. Use ⌃ ⌘ ] / [ for workspace navigation.

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Recording shortcuts

When recording a custom shortcut:
  1. Click the shortcut button in Settings
  2. Press the desired key combination
  3. Only certain keys are recordable:
    • Letters (a-z)
    • Numbers (0-9)
    • Symbols (via keyCode mapping: []{}\;',./ etc.)
    • Arrow keys, Tab, Return
  4. At least one modifier (⌘⌥⇧⌃) is required
Unsupported keys (function keys, media keys, etc.) are not recordable.