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OMezquita's avatar
OMezquita
Copper Contributor
Jun 16, 2024

Copilot for M365 shortcut

Is there a shortcut to activate Copilot in the office applications (Word, Excel, etc)?

I know we can do Alt + H + FX, but is there a simpler one?

4 Replies

  • Surya_Narayana's avatar
    Surya_Narayana
    MCT
    Dec 07, 2025

    hi OMezquita​  As of now, there’s no single, built-in universal keyboard shortcut (like Ctrl+Shift+C) to open Copilot across all Microsoft 365 apps such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. harry18garg​ also mentioned same thing.

    Here’s what you can use instead:

    Current options

    Alt + H + FX – This is the official ribbon-based shortcut for Copilot

    Possible workarounds (simpler)

    If you really want a one-key shortcut, you have a couple of options:

    Use AutoHotkey (Windows)

    Create a custom shortcut like Ctrl + Shift + C that sends: Alt + H + FX

    Example script:

    ^+c::

    Send, !hfx

    return

    Quick Access Toolbar trick (QAT)

    Add Copilot to the Quick Access Toolbar (top bar)

    It will get a number-based shortcut like: Alt + 1, Alt + 2, etc.

    Search bar method

    Press Alt + Q

    Type Copilot

    Press Enter

    Worth requesting as a feature

    You could also submit this as a feature request to Microsoft:

    A global, consistent shortcut for Copilot in all M365 apps

     

  • harry18garg's avatar
    harry18garg
    Brass Contributor
    Jun 16, 2024
    As of now it seems there is no shortcut within Office applications themselves to activate Copilot currently. While Alt + H + FX brings up the Help Pane where you can interact with Copilot, it's not the most streamlined approach. Here are two simpler options to activate Copilot in Office applications: Use the Copilot Icon in Windows 11: If you're using Windows 11, look for the Copilot icon on the right-hand side of your taskbar. Clicking it will launch the Copilot interface, allowing you to interact with it for your Office documents. Keyboard Shortcut (Windows): Press Win + C on your keyboard. This shortcut works system-wide in Windows 11 and brings up the Copilot interface directly.

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