PowerToys Command Palette utility

PowerToys Command Palette allows you to easily access all of your most frequently used commands, apps, and development tools - all from a single solution that is fast, customizable to your unique preferences, and extensible to include your favorite apps. The Command Palette is intended to be the successor of PowerToys Run.

To use the Command Palette, select Win+Alt+Space and start typing! (Note that the keyboard shortcut can be changed in the settings window.)

Important

For this utility to work, the Command Palette must be enabled and running in the background.

Features

Command Palette features include:

• Search for applications, folders or files
• Run commands using > (for example, > cmd will launch Command prompt, or > Shell:startup will open the Windows startup folder)
• Switch between open windows (previously known as Window Walker)
• Do a simple calculation using calculator
• Add bookmarks for frequently visited webpages
• Execute system commands
• Open web pages or start a web search
• Rich extensions to add additional commands and features easily

Settings

The following general options are available within the Command Palette settings page. You can open the settings page by using the Command Palette.

Setting	Description
Activation shortcut	Define the keyboard shortcut to show/hide the Command Palette.
Go home when activated	When the Command Palette is activated it will return to the home page.
Highlight search on activate	The previous search text will be selected when the Command Palette is opened.
Show app details	App details are automatically expanded when displaying an app as a result.
Backspace goes back	Typing Backspace will take you back to the previous page.
Single-click activates	Activate list items with a single click. When disabled, single clicking selects the item and double clicking activates it.

Related content

• PowerToys Run
• Extensibility overview
• Extension samples