Screen Reader Cheat Sheets
You can pull these cheat sheets up on your phone while you're practicing your screen reader on your computer
NVDA Cheat Sheet
Operational
Turn on / off - control + alt + n / NVDA + q
NVDA key - insert, or caps lock if set
moving - ↑ or ↓ to move from element to element
Perform default action - enter
next/prev interactive element - tab / shift + tab
next/prev element of a certain type - single key, or shift + single key
Single-key navigation
tap the key to go to the next of an element type. shift + single key takes you to the previous
Single keys:
- h, 1 - 6: Heading, H1 - H6
- d: Landmark
- k: Link
- b: Button
- f: Form Field
- t: Table | ↓ to enter a table cell, then control + alt + arrow keys to navigate table cells
- l: List | i: List Item
- g: Graphic/Image
VoiceOver for Mac - QuickNav navigation
Operational
activate or deactivate QuickNav - ← + →
next or previous element - → or ←
next/previous rotor-type element - ↓ / ↑
change rotor type - ↑ + →, or ↑ + ←
activate the current element - ↑ + ↓
enter an element - ↓ + →
exit an element - ↓ + ←
Single-key navigation
Go to next/previous element of type by pressing the single key / shift + key
Single keys
- h, 1-6: Heading, H1 - H6
- l: Link
- b: Button
- c: Checkbox
- j: Control (e.g form element)
- g: Image - if image is in a link, you need to move past before you can jump to next image
- x: List - →, ← to navigate list items
- f: Form Field - ↑ + ↓ to enter field, ← + → to turn QuickNav off to be able to type, tab to next field
- t: Table - ← + → to turn QuickNav off, VO + arrows to move around table
VoiceOver for Mac - standard navigation
Operational
Turn on in Settings > Accessibility > Voiceover, or command-f5 or command-triple-click fingerprint sensor
VO key - control + option, or caps lock
VO lock - VO + ; locks it on for one-handed use
open rotor - VO + u, then arrows to navigate, and enter to jump to the component
moving - VO + ← or → to move from element to element
Perform default action - VO + shift + space
enter an element - VO + shift + ↓
leave an element - VO + shift + ↑
next/prev interactive element - tab / shift + tab
next/prev element of a certain type - VO + command + single key / VO + command + shift + key
Single keys:
- h: Heading
- l: Link
- j: Control (like form element)
- g: Image - if image is in a link, you need to move past before you can jump to next image
- x: List - VO + →/← to navigate list items
VoiceOver for iOS
Operational
Turn on in Settings > Accessibility > VoiceOver, or triple click side button if enabled in settings
next/previous element - swipe right/left
read continuously from where you are - two-finger swipe down
read continuously from top of page - two-finger swipe up
select rotor type - rotate two fingers on the screen, like turning a dial
previous/next rotor-type element - swipe up/down
perform default action - double tap
Filling forms
Type in a form field by landing in it, then dragging your finger across the bottom of the screen where the keyboard pops up until it announces the character you want. Double tap the screen to insert that character. When you’re done composing, swipe right anywhere off the keyboard area to move to the next element, often a submit button. Double tap to activate.
Talkback for Android
Operational
Turn on in Settings > Accessibility > TalkBack, or holding volume up and down if enabled in settings
next/previous element - swipe right/left
read continuously from where you are - triple tap with two fingers
select control type - swipe right/left with three fingers, or with single finger down-then-up, or up-then-down
previous/next control-type element - swipe up/down
perform default action - double tap
Filling forms
Type in a form field by landing in it, then dragging your finger across the bottom of the screen where the keyboard pops up until you find the character you want. Double tap the screen to insert that character. When you’re done composing, swipe right anywhere off the keyboard area to move to the next element, often a submit button. Double tap to activate.