There are a lot of things that you can do with dual monitors, and even more if you’re willing to download some additional software to make them sing. But what if you want to keep that stock, vanilla Windows 11 experience and use the built-in keyboard shortcuts to your advantage? There are a surprising number of them that you may not be taking full advantage of.

If you’re part of the dual-monitor revolution, as I like to call it, then knowing some of the most helpful keyboard shortcuts could be beneficial for your day-to-day usage. For the longest time, I just used a second monitor as an additional window into what I was doing on a regular basis. But after teaching myself some of these shortcuts, I can multitask with the best of them. Or just make windows easier to parse through, if I’m aiming for something a little less dramatic.

Win + left and right arrows

For easy snipping

Every day, I’m swapping windows between my dual-monitor setup. It doesn’t matter if I’m tossing Discord (or a sutable replacement once age-verification goes through) to the side to play games, or keep my notes up on another screen, swapping window positions is a key part of my daily work flow. Did you know that you can quickly change the position of where your window is by holding the Windows key and using the left or right arrow?

Not only can you move windows between your monitors, but you can also use this shortcut to snap them to specific portions of the screen that you’re hoping to use. While I’m usually always writing on full screen, there are times that I need to have more than one window open. What better way to use all the space on my screen than snapping between multiple tabs in an instant?

Win + Tab

To see everything running

I don’t know about you, but I’ve always got far too many things running in the background. Even in the screenshot, I’ve got Microsoft Edge opened, alongside Asana for tasks, and Steam to update all the games that need to be updated. If I needed to swap between windows before, I would normally have to use the taskbar, but now? The Windows Key and Tab make the job much easier.

Think of it as a more compressed, easier to digest version of Alt + Tab. Plus, this works on both monitors at the same time, so you can quickly switch to a different window on a different monitor if you’re browsing Reddit when you should be working. If you get caught, I didn’t teach you this trick.

Win + P

For Extend, Duplicate, or Off

Dual monitors are incredibly handy pieces of equipment, but if you’re working in a dark office or room like I typically do? Maybe you’re hoping to save a little strain on your eyes. Extending your screen between two monitors, duplicating it, or just turning off one of your monitors can be done as simply as pressing Windows Key and P at the same time. Once you do this, you’ll have a few different options:

Duplicating a screen can work incredibly well if you’re trying to share the same screen you’re looking at, especially if you’ve got something like a massive TV connected to your desktop or laptop, even if it’s a replacement for a dual-monitor setup. Business meetings will never be the same now that you know how to make this happen.

Wind + Control + D

To create a virtual desktop

Virtual Desktops are one of those things that I’ve, admittedly not utilized as much as I should. It could be an easy way for me to keep my work and personal lives separated, and that may be something that I need to start implementing in the near future to keep my digital clutter at bay. But, it’s also incredibly easy to create something like this, and you can utilize it to turn a dual monitor set-up into, essentially, as many digital “monitors” as you need.

By pressing Windows Key + Control + D, you can instantly create a new Virtual Desktop. By using Windows Key & Tab, you can see what windows you have open, and switch between different desktops with ease. And if you’re done with the new Virtual Desktop that you’ve created and just don’t want it around anymore? Use Control + Windows + F4 to quickly eliminate it. If you’re looking to mess around in a virtual machine and don’t want it crowding up your main display? This could also be a perfect use-case scenario for something like this.

Utilize your screen real estate, don’t just use it for the basics

Since I’ve been teaching myself more keyboard shortcuts, I’ve found that I’m quite a bit more productive and proactive about how I use my PC on a daily basis. From simple things like snapping windows to a specific spot, to more advanced features like virtual desktops, having a dual-monitor setup makes this much easier to handle.

There are literally hundreds of different keyboard shortcuts available with just the Windows Key alone. Finding a select few that have made my day-to-day life easier has been easy, but mastering the rest of them? That’s where things get difficult. While these are just a few of the many available options, you may be surprised to see how much more you can get done once you nail these basic, yet effective, keyboard shortcuts and implement them into your daily life.