Frequently Asked Questions

How do I expand text with QuickKey?
QuickKey works differently than other Text Expansion apps, because it is designed to be secure, and comply with App Store rules. Instead of expanding text directly within a document, you first bring up QuickKey’s window by typing the global shortcut you created when you first launched the app. When you type the global shortcut, QuickKey’s window will appear. Then, type one of the shortcuts you have defined in QuickKey. The full text of the snippet will be copied to the clipboard, and the window will automatically disappear. If you are using the version of QuickKey sold on our website or available on SetApp, then your snippet will automatically be pasted into your document. If you are using the App Store version, then your text will be automatically be pasted into your document if you have the QuickKey Extension installed, or, you can paste the text manually by pressing Command – V.

How do I create snippets?
First, bring up QuickKey’s main window by typing your global shortcut (by default, the app suggests Command – K). Then, click the little gear icon and select “New Snippet” to create a new, empty snippet, or “New Snippet From Clipboard” to create a new snippet with the text you have just copied.

How do placeholders work?
When creating a new text expansion in QuickKey, you can type a ? followed by any combination of alphanumeric characters (without spaces or punctuation). For example, you can use things like ?name or ?business1, etc. QuickKey will then prompt you for the text to replace the placeholder with. For example, if you put “Dear ?name,” in a text expansion, QuickKey will prompt you to replace ?name with the text of your choice. You can enter what you want (i.e. “Susan”) and then the expanded text will be inserted as “Dear Susan,”.

Each snippet supports up to five unique placeholders. For more information, see our detailed guide for QuickKey’s Placeholders.

What are QuickKey’s keyboard shortcuts?
QuickKey allows you to do most actions with a keyboard shortcut. The recommended shortcut to bring up the snippet entry window is Command – K, but you can assign whatever shortcut you want.

From there, you can get to the snippet management window or close the window:
Command – M: Open snippet management window
Command – N: New snippet
Command – Shift – N: New snippet from clipboard
Escape: Close the snippet entry window

In the snippet management window, you can use the following shortcuts:
Tab: Switch between fields.
Command – N: Create a new snippet.
Command – E: Edit the selected snippet.
Command – S or Return: Save the snippet you are editing.

I have the App Store version. How do I get my text expansions to automatically insert?
To automatically insert your text expansions, you need to download the free QuickKey Extension here.