Keyboard shortcuts
Every keyboard shortcut that exists in the Metric Vault dashboard, and the ones people expect that we deliberately do not have.
Last updated 2026-08-06
Summary#
This is the complete list. Metric Vault has a small, deliberate set of shortcuts rather than a large one: a command palette to reach any screen, Enter to run whatever is in front of you, Escape to close whatever is on top, and one shortcut for the assistant. Everything below has been verified against the running app, and the last section lists the shortcuts people reasonably expect but that do not exist, so you stop hunting for them.
Overview#
Three keys carry almost all of it.
| Key | The idea |
|---|---|
| Ctrl+K or ⌘K | Go anywhere. Opens the command palette, which searches every tool and workflow by name |
| Enter | Do the thing in front of you. In a tool's input it runs the tool; in a chat box it sends |
| Escape | Close the top-most thing: a dialog, a panel, the palette, a menu |
Shortcuts work anywhere in the dashboard, including while a tool is running. None of them is customizable, and none of them deletes anything, publishes anything or sends anything to a client. Exactly one of them spends credits, and it is called out below.
Important: Enter inside a tool's input starts the run and spends the tool's credits, exactly as clicking the run button would. It is the one shortcut that costs money. If you have already run that exact query, the "You already ran this" dialog appears first and offers the saved copy for free.
Global#
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ctrl+K / ⌘K | Open the command palette. Press again to close it |
| Ctrl+/ (Windows and Linux), ⌘+/ (Mac) | Open or close the AI Assistant panel. It does nothing while the full Analyst AI screen is already open, because the assistant is already in front of you |
| Escape | Close the top-most overlay |
Clicking the search box in the top bar opens the same command palette, so the shortcut and the click are interchangeable.
Command palette#
The palette is the fastest way to reach any of the tools without using the tool list. Its input reads Jump to tool, workflow, or type a question… and its footer repeats the keys: ↑↓ navigate, ↵ open, ⌘K / Ctrl K.
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ctrl+K / ⌘K | Toggle it open or closed |
| Arrow Down | Move the highlight down one result |
| Arrow Up | Move the highlight up one result |
| Enter | Open the highlighted result |
| Escape | Close it without going anywhere |
With the box empty it shows up to five recently visited screens followed by popular ones, capped at twelve. Typing ranks every tool and workflow by name and shows the top twenty. The command palette (Ctrl+K) covers the matching rules and the recents list.
Running a tool#
| Shortcut | Where | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Enter | Any tool's main input field | Runs that tool, exactly as pressing its run button would |
| Enter | Any workflow launcher's input field | Runs that workflow |
| Enter | Growth Actions domain field | Generates the growth queue |
| Enter | Backlink Hygiene Toolkit input | Starts the hygiene scan |
| Enter | Forum & Reddit Visibility input | Starts the scan |
For tools that take two inputs, such as Competitor Battle and Gap Finder, press Enter from either field; the values are combined the same way the run button combines them.
Chat and the assistant#
| Shortcut | Where | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Enter | Analyst AI message box | Sends the message |
| Ctrl+Enter / ⌘+Enter | The floating assistant composer | Sends the message. Plain Enter inserts a line break there, so you can write several paragraphs |
| Enter without Shift | The follow-up question box on a responsiveness analysis | Sends the question |
| Shift+Enter | The same box | Inserts a line break instead of sending |
Each Analyst AI message costs 1 credit. See Analyst AI.
Dialogs, panels and menus#
Escape closes whichever of these is open, top-most first.
| Closed by Escape |
|---|
| The command palette |
| The tool flyout that appears when you hover the icon rail |
| The "You already ran this" dialog |
| The share dialog |
| The saved-work detail and report viewer in the Library |
| The custom date-range picker |
| The guided tour |
| Any open dropdown menu |
| Shortcut | Where | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Tab | The report picker dialog | Moves between the controls inside the dialog and stays inside it, so focus cannot escape behind the overlay |
| Arrow Left / Arrow Right | The guided tour | Previous and next step |
Lists and controls#
| Shortcut | Where | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Arrow Left / Arrow Right | The date-range pills in the top bar | Move to the previous or next range |
| Enter or Space | Any focusable card or row, including Library rows | Activate it, the same as clicking |
| Enter | An "add" field, such as adding a keyword to the Keyword Vault, a competitor to the Competitor Vault, a tracked prompt, a My Content item or a teammate's address | Submits that row without reaching for the button |
| Tab and Shift+Tab | Everywhere | Move forward and backward through the controls in reading order |
Shortcuts that do not exist#
People look for these. They are not implemented, and nothing in the interface is listening for them.
| Expected shortcut | Reality |
|---|---|
| A save shortcut | Nothing needs saving. Every run is stored automatically in your Library. See Saved Work |
| An export shortcut | Use the Export PDF, Export Excel, Export CSV and Export JSON buttons on the result. See Exporting results |
| A print shortcut | Your browser's own print command works; there is no app-level one |
| A theme toggle shortcut | Switch light and dark from the top bar. See Light and dark mode |
| Number keys or bracket keys to switch section | Use the command palette or the icon rail |
| A shortcut to open the notifications or favorites panels | Use the bell and star buttons in the top bar |
| A shortcut to re-open the guided tour | The tour cannot be replayed from the interface. See The guided tour |
| Vim-style or Gmail-style single-letter keys | Not implemented |
Notes for keyboard-only use#
- Every control is reachable with Tab, and cards and rows that behave like buttons respond to Enter and Space.
- The report picker traps focus while it is open, which is the correct behavior for a modal dialog: Tab cycles inside it and Escape closes it.
- The command palette is the shortest keyboard route to any screen, and it is the recommended alternative to the icon rail's hover flyout, which needs a pointer.
- Shortcuts fire from anywhere in the page except where they would fight with typing. Ctrl+K works while a text field is focused; plain Enter is interpreted by the field you are in.
See also
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