Skip to content

tmux

tmux Keybindings

tmux is a terminal multiplexer that lets you run multiple terminal sessions inside a single window, detach and reattach sessions, and split your terminal into panes. All tmux keybindings start with the prefix key, which is Ctrl+b by default. Press the prefix, release it, then press the next key.

The Most Important Shortcuts

  • Prefix Key (Ctrl+b): Must be pressed before every tmux command below.
  • Create New Window (Prefix c): Open a new window (like a tab).
  • Detach Session (Prefix d): Detach from the current session. The session keeps running in the background.
  • Split Horizontally (Prefix "): Split the current pane into top and bottom.
  • Split Vertically (Prefix %): Split the current pane into left and right.
  • Command Prompt (Prefix :): Open the tmux command prompt for running tmux commands directly.

Sessions

  • New Session: tmux new -s name (from the shell, not inside tmux).
  • List Sessions: tmux ls (from the shell) or Prefix s (inside tmux -- interactive session picker).
  • Attach to Session: tmux attach -t name (from the shell).
  • Detach (Prefix d): Detach from the current session.
  • Rename Session (Prefix $): Rename the current session.
  • Switch Session (Prefix s): Interactive session and window tree picker.
  • Switch to Last Session (Prefix L): Jump back to the previous session.

Windows (Tabs)

  • New Window (Prefix c): Create a new window.
  • Next Window (Prefix n): Switch to the next window.
  • Previous Window (Prefix p): Switch to the previous window.
  • Select Window (Prefix 0-9): Jump to window 0 through 9.
  • Find Window (Prefix f): Search for a window by name.
  • Rename Window (Prefix ,): Rename the current window.
  • Close Window (Prefix &): Close the current window (prompts for confirmation).
  • Window List (Prefix w): Interactive window picker (shows all sessions and windows).
  • Move Window (Prefix .): Move the current window to a new index.
  • Last Window (Prefix l): Switch to the last active window.

Panes

  • Split Horizontal (Prefix "): Split the pane top/bottom.
  • Split Vertical (Prefix %): Split the pane left/right.
  • Navigate Panes (Prefix Arrow Keys): Move focus to the pane in that direction.
  • Cycle Panes (Prefix o): Move to the next pane.
  • Toggle Pane Zoom (Prefix z): Zoom the current pane to fill the entire window. Press again to restore.
  • Close Pane (Prefix x): Close the current pane (prompts for confirmation). Or just type exit.
  • Swap Pane (Prefix {): Swap the current pane with the previous one.
  • Swap Pane (Prefix }): Swap the current pane with the next one.
  • Rotate Panes (Prefix Ctrl+o): Rotate panes within the window.
  • Toggle Layouts (Prefix Space): Cycle through pane layout presets (even-horizontal, even-vertical, main-horizontal, main-vertical, tiled).
  • Resize Pane (Prefix Alt+Arrow Keys): Resize the pane in 5-cell increments.
  • Resize Pane (Prefix Ctrl+Arrow Keys): Resize the pane in 1-cell increments.
  • Display Pane Numbers (Prefix q): Show pane numbers briefly. Press a number to jump to that pane.
  • Break Pane (Prefix !): Move the current pane into a new window.
  • Convert Window to Pane (Prefix :join-pane -t [target]): Join a window as a pane in another window.

Copy Mode (Scrollback)

  • Enter Copy Mode (Prefix [): Enter copy mode to scroll through history and copy text.
  • Navigation (in copy mode):
    • Arrow keys, Page Up/Down for scrolling.
    • If using vi mode: h/j/k/l, w/b, 0/$, gg/G, / for search.
  • Start Selection (Space): Begin selecting text (in vi mode).
  • Copy Selection (Enter): Copy the selected text to the tmux buffer.
  • Paste Buffer (Prefix ]): Paste the most recently copied text.
  • Exit Copy Mode (q or Esc): Leave copy mode.
  • Search Forward (Prefix /): Search forward in the scrollback (in copy mode).
  • Search Backward (Prefix ?): Search backward (in copy mode).

Miscellaneous

  • Show Clock (Prefix t): Display a clock in the current pane.
  • List Keybindings (Prefix ?): Show all current key bindings.
  • Reload Config (Prefix : then source-file ~/.tmux.conf): Reload the tmux configuration.

Customization

  • Config File: ~/.tmux.conf
  • Common Customizations: 
    # Change prefix to Ctrl+a (more ergonomic)
unbind C-b
set -g prefix C-a
bind C-a send-prefix

# Split panes with | and -
bind | split-window -h
bind - split-window -v

# Enable mouse support
set -g mouse on

# Vi-style copy mode
setw -g mode-keys vi

# Navigate panes with vim keys
bind h select-pane -L
bind j select-pane -D
bind k select-pane -U
bind l select-pane -R

# Start window numbering at 1
set -g base-index 1
setw -g pane-base-index 1

# Faster escape time (for Vim/Neovim users)
set -sg escape-time 10

# Increase scrollback buffer
set -g history-limit 50000