Premiere Pro Shortcuts: Navigating the Timeline
Use keyboard shortcuts to control playback in your Premiere Pro timeline!
Keeping your fingers on the keyboard (and not having to jump back and forth from keyboard to mouse) will make you a more efficient video editor.
Let’s start with the basics. If you’re a total newbie, these are for you. Otherwise, jump ahead. The fundamental Premiere Pro playback shortcuts:
| Space Bar: start/stop playback | J: plays backward |
| K: stops playback | L: plays forward |
You can fast-forward through the Premiere Pro timeline by repeatedly hitting L. Similarly, quick reverse by repeatedly tapping J. The speed of playback in either direction is dependent on the number of times you tap the key – more taps equals faster playback.
Here’s a few advanced Premiere Pro timeline shortcuts that will make it quicker to move around your timeline:
| Shift and J or L | Super slow-motion playback |
| Down Arrow | Move forward to next edit point on clip |
| Up Arrow | Move backwards to next edit point on clip |
| Shift and Up or Down Arrow | Jump to next edit on any track |
| Right or Left Arrows | Move a frame in either direction. |
Using these Premiere Pro shortcuts is KEY to being efficient. Commit them to memory. Make yourself use them! Soon enough you won’t know what you did without them.
