Strikethrough Shortcut (Mac & PC) for Word, Google Docs, Excel & PowerPoint

So you want to cross out text (like this) in Word, Excel, Google Docs, and/or PowerPoint using your keyboard shortcuts.

You are wise for looking this up!

That’s because strikethrough keyboard shortcuts like this are the fastest way to double your productivity in whatever software program you use most.

Word, Excel, Google Docs, and PowerPoint all have different sets of keyboard shortcuts you can use to create the strikethrough effect.

On top of that, you will see that there are a variety of other text effects you can quickly apply if you use the Font dialog box shortcuts described below.

It will be noted throughout the article which strikethrough shortcuts Mac or PC users can apply. 

Note: If you are NOT interested in learning the keyboard shortcuts but still want to create the crossed out text effect in Word, Excel, Google Docs, and PowerPoint, see our guide here

Strikethrough Shortcut in Google Docs

The strikethrough shortcut in Google Docs is one of the simplest keyboard shortcuts there is. However, they differ per system (PC or Max).
Strikethrough Shortcut Strikethrough Text for PC (Ctrl + 5)

A. Strikethrough shortcut in Google Docs (PC Only)

  1. Select the text within your Google Docs that you would like to strikethrough
  2. Hold down Alt+ Shift + 5 and release
alt="Strikethrough Shortcut Strikethrough Text for PC (Command + Shift +5)"

B. Google Docs strikethrough shortcut (Mac Only)

  1. Highlight the content you would like to strikethrough on Google Docs
  2. Hit Command + Shift + X ​
It does not matter if the X  in this strikethrough shortcut is lowercase or uppercase.

Strikethrough Shortcut in Excel

There are three keyboard shortcuts you can use in Excel to create the strikethrough effect.
Hit Ctrl plus 5 on your keyboard to use the strikethough shortcut in Excel

1. Strikethrough in Excel using the Ctrl + 5 shortcut (Mac & PC)

  1. Select the cells that you want to strikethrough in your spreadsheet
  2. Hit Ctrl + 5 on your keyboard
To open the Format cells dialog box in Excel, hit Alt then H then F then N on you keyboard

2.  Excel strikethrough shortcut using your Ribbon Guide (PC only)

  1. Select the cells that you want to strikethrough in your spreadsheet
  2. Hit Alt, then H, then FN on your keyboard to open the Font dialog box
  3. Hit Alt + K to select the strikethrough effect
  4. Then hit Enter to accept the changes
Hitting Alt + K inside the Font dialog box automatically selects the command for strikethrough. Alternatively, you can click the strikethrough command with your mouse if you don’t want to remember the Alt + K shortcut.
Examples of the different text effect options available to you in the Format Cells dialog box in Microsoft Excel

3. Excel strikethrough shortcut using your Format Cells dialog box (PC only)

  1. Select the cells that you want to strikethrough in your spreadsheet
  2. Hit Ctrl + 1 on your keyboard to open the Format Cells dialog box
  3. Inside the dialog box, hit F to jump to the Font options (if it is not already open)
  4. Hit Alt + K to select the strikethrough option
  5. Then hit Enter to accept the changes
Also, a quick note on the Font dialog box in Excel.Remember that the dialog box always opens exactly as you left it the last time you used it (see the tabs of the dialog box below).
Examples of the different tabs in the Format Cells dialog box in Excel

That means that if you last used the Font tab when you closed out of the dialog box, the next time you open the dialog box, it will start with the Font tab selected.

Inside the Font tab, you will also find a few other text effects that you can apply using your keyboard shortcuts. To use these shortcuts, simply hold the Alt key and hit the underlined letter (as pictured below).

  • Strikethrough: Alt + K
  • Superscript: ALt + E
  • Subscript: Alt + B

4. Format Cells dialog box strikethrough shortcut (Mac only)

  1. Select the cells that you want to strikethrough in your spreadsheet
  2. Hit Ctrl + 1 on your keyboard to open the Format Cells dialog box
  3. The Font dialog box will appear, select the strikethrough text effect with your cursor to apply it to the cells

Word Strikethrough Shortcut

There are two different shortcuts you can use to put a line through your text in Microsoft Word (like this).Which one is better depends on what you are doing and how many formatting options you want to put at your fingertips (like the double strikethrough effect).Use your Ribbon guide shortcuts to cross out text in Word

1. Use your Ribbon Guide shortcuts to cross out text in Word (PC only)

  1. Select the text you want to strike out in your Word document
  2. On your keyboard hit Alt, H, 4
To make the Alt, H, 4 shortcut work, you DO NOT need to hold the keys down. Instead, simply hit and let go of the Alt key, then hit and let go of the H key and finally hit and let go of the 4 key.If you can’t remember the shortcut, you can always just click the command with your mouse to cross out your text.Note: If you are using the strikethrough shortcut to add recommendations and comments to your Word document, a better method is to use Comment commands. To learn how to properly add and navigate comments in Word, read our guide here.Hit Command, Shift, and X on your keyboard to use the strikethough shortcut in Word for Mac

2. Use your keyboard shortcut for the strikethrough effect (Mac only)

  1. Select the text you want to strike out in your Mac Word document
  2. On your keyboard hold down Command + Shift + X
Note: Alternatively, if you don’t want to use your Word strikethrough shortcut you can just click the command for strikethrough in the Ribbon Guide using your mouse.Microsoft Wordfont dialog box text effects

3. Use your Font dialog box shortcuts in Word to cross out text (PC only)

  1. Select the text you want to strikethrough
  2. Hit Ctrl + D to open the Font dialog box
  3. Inside the Font dialog box, hit Alt + K to select the Strikethrough
  4. Hit Enter for okay
Use the Alt key plus the underlined letter to shortcut to each text effect
  • Strikethrough: Alt + K
  • Double strikethrough: Alt + L
  • Superscript: Alt + P
  • Subscript: Alt + B
  • Small caps: Alt + M
  • All caps: Alt + A
  • Hidden: Alt + H
To remove a strikethrough in Word, simply select the text and either use the shortcut again to remove it or hit Ctrl + Spacebar to remove all formatting. Ctrl + Spacebar reverts your text formatting back to the default formatting of your document.Note: PowerPoint and Word both have a dedicate superscript and subscript shortcuts. To learn how to superscript and subscript in Word, Excel and PowerPoint (including their keyboard shortcuts), read our guide here.Microsoft Word text effects in Font dialog box accessed by strikethrough shortcut Command + X

4. Use your Font dialog box as a strikethrough shortcut (Mac only)

  1. Select within your Word Document the text that you want to strikethrough
  2. Hold down Command + D and the Font dialog box will appear
  3. Use your cursor to select the text effect you would like to apply. Unfortunately, there is no shortcut to select the text effect once you are in the Font dialog box.

Strikethrough Shortcut in PowerPoint

Just like the Word strikethrough shortcuts, there are two different keyboard strikethrough shortcuts you can use to put a line through your text in Microsoft PowerPoint (like this).

Which one is better?

That depends on what you are trying to accomplish, what system you use,  and/or how many formatting options you want at your fingertips (with the Font dialog box shortcut giving you more options).

Screen shot of keyboard shortcut for strikethrough in PowerPoint using your Ribbon Guide for PC Users Only (Alt + H +4)

1. Shortcut the strikethrough command in your Ribbon (PC Only)

  1. Select the text (or object with text in it) that you want to strikethrough on your slide
  2. On your keyboard hit Alt, H, 4

Hitting the command once applies the crossed out text effect. Applying it a second time takes the text effect away.

Note: To make the Alt, H, 4 shortcut for strikethrough work, you do not need to hold the keys down. Instead, simply hit and let go of the Alt key, hit and let go of the H key, then hit and let go of the 4 key.

Examples of the different text effects options available in the Font dialog box in Powerpoint


2. Use your Font dialog box shortcuts to strikethrough text (PC Only)

  1. Select the text (or object with text) that you want to strikethrough on your slide
  2. Hit Ctrl + T on your keyboard to open the Font dialog box
  3. Inside the Font dialog box, hit Alt + K to select the single strikethrough
  4. Hit Enter for okay

If you use the Font dialog box shortcut in PowerPoint (Ctrl + T), you also open up a number of other formatting options that you can additionally shortcut inside the dialog box by holding the Alt key and hitting the effects underlined letter (as pictured below).

Text effect options available with the underlined letters you can use to active them with your Alt key

  • Strikethrough: Alt + K
  • Double Strikethrough: Alt + L
  • Superscript: Alt + P
  • Subscript: Alt + B
  • Small caps: Alt + M
  • All caps: Alt + A
  • Equalize Character Height: Alt + Q

To remove a strikethrough in PowerPoint, simply select the text (or object) with the strike out effect and either use the shortcut again, or hit Ctrl + Space Bar on your keyboard to clear all of the text’s formatting (reverting it back to the formatting set for your template).

Text effects in Font dialog box accessed by Command + T in Powerpoint


3. Use your Font dialog box shortcuts to strikethrough text (Mac Only)

  1. Your text strikethrough shortcut for Mac starts with you selecting the text or object of text you want to strikethrough on your PowerPoint slide
  2. Hit the Command + T keyboard shortcut to open the Font dialog box
  3. Use your mouse to select the strikethrough effect (or one of the many other effects offered in PowerPoint

While this isn’t as direct of a shortcut as it is on a PC, this is still much faster than using your mouse for everything.

Conclusion

As you can see, there are a variety of keyboard shortcuts you can use across the Microsoft Office suite and Google Docs to cross out text.

And while the keyboard shortcuts are nice, the Font dialog boxes give you the most formatting options.

If you enjoyed this tutorial and want to learn other keyboard shortcuts and tricks to speed up your work, visit us here.

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