Using only a keyboard to perform any task on your computer can sound daunting. But what if your mouse stopped working or the touchpad got disabled/damaged on your laptop?
How do you move the mouse with a keyboard?
Well, you can achieve it by using an accessibility feature called “mouse keys” available on both Windows and Mac devices.
So, without much delay, let’s get into the article to learn more about it.
How to Move the Mouse with a Keyboard on Windows
To move the mouse with the keyboard on Windows, you have to enable the “mouse keys” setting. However, you need to have a numpad on your keyboard to use this feature.
Before You Begin
There are some essential keys to know so you can easily navigate different settings and enable them.
Tab key: Move across different sections Space key: Check/uncheck the checkbox Up/Down arrow: Move up/down within a section Left/Right arrow: Move left/right within a section Esc key: Go one step back
Enable the Mouse Keys
You must enable the mouse keys in your system settings before you use your keyboard to move the mouse cursor. You can follow the steps mentioned below.
- Press the Windows + R key and type control to open the control panel.
- By default, the cursor is placed on the search bar. So, type ease of access center and its setting will appear below.
- Next, press Enter while Ease of Access Center is selected.
- Use the tab key or the down arrow to reach. Make the mouse easier to use, and then press Enter.
- Now, under the Control the mouse with the keyboard section, enable the Turn on Mouse Keys checkbox by pressing the spacebar.
- Finally, press Enter for Apply and OK buttons.
To quickly access the Mouse keys settings, you can enable a shortcut key in the Ease of Access center. For this,
- First, navigate to Control the mouse with the keyboard section, as explained above.
- Next, go to Set up Mouse keys and press Enter.
- Under the Keyboard shortcut section, press the spacebar to enable the “Turn on Mouse Keys with left ALT + left SHIFT + NUM LOCK” option.
- Jump to the Apply and OK buttons and press Enter for both.
Using Mouse Keys to Move the Cursor
After successfully enabling the mouse keys, you can use the numpad on your keyboard to move the cursor in different directions as follows.
Num8: Up Num2: Down Num4: Left Num6: Right Num7: Diagonally upwards to the left side Num9: Diagonally upwards to the right side Num1: Diagonally downwards to the left side Num3: Diagonally downwards to the right side /: Sets the click mode to left-click -: Sets the click mode to right-click Num5: Performs the click action according to the click mode
Adjusting the Mouse Pointer Speed
If the cursor is moving too slow or fast, you can adjust it according to your preferences. Here’s how you can do it.
- Navigate to the Set up Mouse Keys section.
- Under the Pointer speed section, use the left/right arrow keys to drag the sliders below Top speed and Acceleration.
Set the Top speed slider to High and the Acceleration slider to Fast if you want the cursor to move faster.
- Move to Apply and OK buttons and press Enter for both.
Furthermore, check the Hold down CTRL to speed up and SHIFT to slow down checkbox in the Set up Mouse Keys section for quicker access to pointer speed.
Check If Mouse Keys Are Enabled
You can know whether the mouse keys are enabled or not with the Mouse key icon. For this,
- Press the Windows + I key to open the Settings app.
- Search for and select Taskbar settings.
- On Windows 10, choose the “select which icons appear on the taskbar” option. For Windows 11, choose the taskbar corner overflow.
- Use the tab key to move around and press the spacebar to enable Windows Explorer (Mousekeys)
After enabling the above setting, you can view the MouseKeys icon on the taskbar. It displays a red cross icon if mouse keys are disabled. Also, to determine the current click mode, you can check the side with the gray pattern on the mouse keys icon.
How to Move the Mouse with the Keyboard on Mac
Similar to Windows, Mac also has a setting called “mouse keys.” You can enable it to move the mouse cursor using only the keyboard. Also, you can use the same essential keys(tab, arrow keys, spacebar) to navigate around different sections and enable options around Mac.
Enable the Mouse Keys
To turn the mouse keys on Mac,
- Press the Option + Command + F5 key.
- On the Accessibility Options prompt, jump to “Enable Mouse Keys” option under the Mouse & Keyboard section and press the spacebar to enable it.
- Press Enter key when done.
Using Mouse Keys to Move the Cursor
Unlike on Windows, you don’t necessarily need to have a Numpad on your keyboard. You can use both the Numpad as well as the regular keys too.
Using the Numpad to move the cursor on Mac is the same as on Windows. However, you can use these keys even if you are using a Mac laptop and don’t have a Numpad on your keyboard.
8: Up K: Down U: Left O: Right 7: Diagonally upwards to the left side 9: Diagonally upwards to the right side J: Diagonally downwards to the left side L: Diagonally downwards to the right side
