Opera Keyboard Shortcuts
Opera shares its core rendering engine and most fundamental shortcuts with Chrome, since both are Chromium-based, but it layers on a set of Opera-specific features — Workspaces for grouping tabs, an integrated sidebar for messaging apps like WhatsApp and Telegram without separate windows, and a built-in ad blocker toggle — each with its own dedicated bindings. Long-time Opera users, a base that goes back to the browser's pre-Chromium Presto engine days, sometimes carry over expectations from that older era that don't hold in the modern Chromium-based version, so it's worth treating current Opera as closer to 'Chrome plus extras' than judging it against decades-old Opera behavior. Its Chromium base means the tab and address-bar shortcuts inherit the same Ctrl/Cmd split every other Chromium browser uses, so nothing here needs separate memorizing if you've used Chrome or Edge before. This page assumes you're already using or considering Opera specifically for its distinctive extras — the built-in VPN, native ad blocking, or the messenger sidebar — rather than as a generic Chrome substitute, since those Opera-only features are where the shortcut set actually diverges from anything you already know. If you're switching from Chrome, expect roughly five minutes of adjustment for Workspaces and the sidebar, and zero adjustment for everything else, since tabs, windows, and the address bar all behave identically to what Chrome already trained you to expect.
Workspaces Sidebar
| Action | Windows | Mac | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Create new Workspace | Ctrl+Alt+N | Cmd+Option+N | Creates a new Workspace, Opera's tab-grouping feature for separating distinct sets of open tabs (e.g., work versus personal browsing) accessible from small icons at the top of the sidebar. |
| Switch between Workspaces | Ctrl+Alt+Right/Left | Cmd+Option+Right/Left | Rotates through the existing Workspaces one at a time, replacing the entire visible tab strip with whichever Workspace becomes active. |
| Toggle sidebar | Ctrl+Shift+S (varies by version) | Cmd+Shift+S | Shows or hides Opera's sidebar, which hosts Workspaces, bookmarks, and the integrated messenger panels for apps like WhatsApp and Telegram without needing separate browser tabs or windows for them. |
| Open integrated messenger panel | Click sidebar icon, no default key | Same | Opens one of Opera's built-in messenger integrations (WhatsApp, Telegram, Messenger, VK) as a persistent sidebar panel rather than a separate tab, with no default keyboard shortcut assigned out of the box. |
| Pin/unpin a sidebar shortcut | Right-click sidebar icon > Pin, no default key | Same | Adds or removes a specific tool or messenger from the persistent sidebar, letting you curate exactly which quick-access icons stay visible rather than leaving Opera's full default set enabled. |
Tabs Windows
| Action | Windows | Mac | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| New tab | Ctrl+T | Cmd+T | Opens a new blank tab within the current Workspace, standard Chromium behavior. |
| Close current tab | Ctrl+W | Cmd+W | Closes the active tab, identical to the standard Chromium shortcut shared with Chrome and Edge. |
| Reopen last closed tab | Ctrl+Shift+T | Cmd+Shift+T | Restores the most recently closed tab and its history, standard Chromium behavior. |
| New private window | Ctrl+Shift+N | Cmd+Shift+N | Opens a new private browsing window with Opera's built-in free VPN available as an option within it, a feature not present in Chrome's Incognito mode at all without a third-party extension. |
Browsing Tools
| Action | Windows | Mac | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toggle built-in VPN | Click VPN icon in address bar, no default key | Same | Enables or disables Opera's free built-in VPN feature, unique among mainstream browsers for not requiring a separate paid subscription or extension, though it has no default keyboard shortcut assigned. |
| Toggle built-in ad blocker for site | Click shield icon, no default key | Same | Toggles Opera's native ad-blocking feature for the current site, built directly into the browser rather than requiring a third-party extension like Chrome and Firefox typically do. |
| Take a screenshot | Ctrl+Shift+5 (region select) | Cmd+Shift+5 | Opens Opera's built-in screenshot tool for capturing a selected region, full page, or visible viewport directly from the browser without an external screenshot utility. |
| Open Opera Flow | Click Flow icon in sidebar, no default key | Same | Opens Opera Flow, a private cross-device note and link-sharing panel that syncs content between your desktop and mobile Opera without needing a full account-based cloud service, useful for quickly sending yourself a link or note between devices. |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Opera's built-in VPN a genuine no-strings-attached free VPN?
It's a real, no-subscription-required feature built directly into the browser, but it only routes traffic from the Opera browser itself, not your entire system's traffic the way a full VPN application would, and it's provided by Opera's own infrastructure rather than a general-purpose VPN service — worth understanding as browser-level privacy/geo-routing rather than a full system VPN replacement.
Why does closing my browser sometimes lose my Workspace tabs?
This depends on your configured startup behavior in Opera's settings — if set to open a fresh start page rather than 'continue where you left off,' each Workspace's tabs won't automatically restore on the next launch. Checking Settings > On Startup and choosing to continue previous session preserves Workspace tab sets across restarts.
Do the integrated messenger sidebar panels require a separate app installation?
No — Opera's messenger integrations (WhatsApp, Telegram, Messenger, and others) run as embedded web views within the sidebar panel itself, functioning essentially like the web version of each service loaded persistently alongside your browsing rather than a native desktop app or browser extension.
What's the difference between Opera Flow and just emailing myself a link?
Flow is built specifically for quick, low-friction cross-device transfer without needing to open an email client, compose a message, or worry about a link cluttering an inbox — it's meant as a lightweight scratchpad synced directly between your own Opera installations, closer to a personal clipboard than a communication tool, though emailing yourself certainly accomplishes a similar end result if you'd rather not use it.
Can Workspaces and the sidebar be disabled entirely if I only want a plain Chrome-like browser?
Yes — both are optional features that can be turned off in Opera's settings if you prefer a more minimal interface, and doing so leaves the underlying Chromium tab, window, and address bar behavior fully intact and unaffected, since those core browsing shortcuts don't depend on Workspaces or the sidebar being enabled.
Does switching Workspaces close the tabs from the previous Workspace?
No — switching away from a Workspace simply hides its tabs from the visible tab bar rather than closing them; every tab remains open and fully loaded in the background, and switching back to that Workspace instantly restores the exact same tab set exactly as you left it, making Workspaces closer to a tab-bar filter than a session-closing action.
Does Opera have a shortcut for opening its built-in sidebar messengers like WhatsApp or Messenger?
Not a dedicated keyboard shortcut — clicking the messenger icons pinned in Opera's sidebar opens each one in a persistent panel alongside your browsing, a feature unique to Opera among major browsers, but toggling a specific messenger open still requires a mouse click on its icon rather than a keystroke.