Emacs Cheatsheet #

Emacs is a highly customizable and extensible text editor. It is known for its powerful features and extensive keyboard shortcuts, making it suitable for a wide range of tasks.

Command/Option	Example	Description
`C-f`	`C-f`	Move cursor forward by one character
`C-b`	`C-b`	Move cursor backward by one character
`C-n`	`C-n`	Move cursor to the next line
`C-p`	`C-p`	Move cursor to the previous line
`M-f`	`M-f`	Move cursor forward by one word
`M-b`	`M-b`	Move cursor backward by one word
`C-a`	`C-a`	Move cursor to the beginning of the line
`C-e`	`C-e`	Move cursor to the end of the line
`M-<`	`M-<`	Move cursor to the beginning of the buffer
`M->`	`M->`	Move cursor to the end of the buffer

Editing Text #

Command/Option	Example	Description
`C-d`	`C-d`	Delete the character under the cursor
`M-d`	`M-d`	Delete the word forward
`C-k`	`C-k`	Kill (cut) text from the cursor to the end of the line
`C-y`	`C-y`	Yank (paste) the previously killed text
`M-y`	`M-y`	Cycle through the killed texts
`C-x C-s`	`C-x C-s`	Save the current buffer
`C-x C-c`	`C-x C-c`	Exit Emacs
`C-/` or `C-x u`	`C-/` or `C-x u`	Undo the last action
`C-space`	`C-space`	Set the mark (start selection)

Search and Replace #

Command/Option	Example	Description
`C-s`	`C-s search_term`	Search forward for “search_term”
`C-r`	`C-r search_term`	Search backward for “search_term”
`M-%`	`M-% old_text RET new_text RET`	Replace “old_text” with “new_text” in the buffer

File Operations #

Command/Option	Example	Description
`C-x C-f`	`C-x C-f filename`	Open or create a file named “filename”
`C-x C-w`	`C-x C-w newfile`	Save the current buffer as “newfile”
`C-x k`	`C-x k`	Kill (close) the current buffer
`C-x b`	`C-x b buffer_name`	Switch to the buffer named “buffer_name”

Window Management #

Command/Option	Example	Description
`C-x 2`	`C-x 2`	Split the window horizontally
`C-x 3`	`C-x 3`	Split the window vertically
`C-x 1`	`C-x 1`	Delete other windows, keeping only the current one
`C-x o`	`C-x o`	Switch to the other window

Buffer Management #

Command/Option	Example	Description
`C-x b`	`C-x b buffer_name`	Switch to the buffer named “buffer_name”
`C-x C-b`	`C-x C-b`	List all buffers
`C-x k`	`C-x k buffer_name`	Kill (close) the buffer named “buffer_name”

Customization and Help #

Command/Option	Example	Description
`M-x`	`M-x command`	Execute a command by name
`C-h t`	`C-h t`	Open the Emacs tutorial
`C-h f`	`C-h f function_name`	Display documentation for “function_name”
`C-h v`	`C-h v variable_name`	Display documentation for “variable_name”
`M-x customize`	`M-x customize`	Open the customization interface

Advanced Commands #

Command/Option	Example	Description
`M-x shell`	`M-x shell`	Open a shell within Emacs
`M-x term`	`M-x term`	Open a terminal emulator within Emacs
`M-x magit`	`M-x magit`	Open the Magit interface for Git version control

This cheatsheet covers the essential Emacs commands and options to help you navigate, edit, and manage text efficiently in Emacs.