Kitty Terminal Emulator
Master search, navigation, and window management in the Kitty terminal.
Getting Started
Configuration File
Kitty is configured via a single plain-text file. If it doesn't exist, create it:
mkdir -p ~/.config/kitty
touch ~/.config/kitty/kitty.conf
Reload Configuration
Instantly apply changes made to [config_path] without restarting the terminal.
Shortcut:
Ctrl + Shift + F5
Scrolling & Navigation
Note: Kitty purposefully does not include a visual scrollbar. All history navigation is designed to be keyboard-driven.
Line-by-Line Scroll
Move up or down the terminal output one line at a time.
Shortcuts:
- Up:
Ctrl + Shift + Up - Down:
Ctrl + Shift + Down
Page-by-Page Scroll
Jump quickly through large blocks of output.
Shortcuts:
- Page Up:
Ctrl + Shift + Page_Up - Page Down:
Ctrl + Shift + Page_Down
Jump to Top / Bottom
Instantly navigate to the absolute beginning or end of the active buffer.
Shortcuts:
- Top:
Ctrl + Shift + Home - Bottom:
Ctrl + Shift + End
Search & History (The Pager)
Kitty offloads complex searching and history browsing to an external pager (usually less), which allows for extremely fast regex searching.
Browse Scrollback (Open Pager)
Opens your entire terminal history for the current window in a searchable environment.
Shortcut:
Ctrl + Shift + H
Searching Inside the Pager
Once the pager is open via the shortcut above, use standard less navigation:
Commands:
- Search Forward:
/followed by your search term, thenEnter - Search Backward:
?followed by your search term, thenEnter - Next Match:
n - Previous Match:
N - Quit Pager:
q
Window Management (Splits)
Kitty refers to split panes as "Windows". Multiple windows live inside a single Tab.
Create New Window
Splits the current view and opens a new terminal pane in the same working directory.
Shortcut:
Ctrl + Shift + Enter
Switch Focus Between Windows
Navigate through your open split panes.
Shortcuts:
- Next Window:
Ctrl + Shift + ] - Previous Window:
Ctrl + Shift + [
Move Window Position
Rearrange the order of your split panes.
Shortcuts:
- Move Forward:
Ctrl + Shift + F - Move Backward:
Ctrl + Shift + B - Move to Top:
Ctrl + Shift +`
Close Current Window
Shortcut:
Ctrl + Shift + W
Tab Management
Tabs hold one or more Windows. They behave like standard web browser tabs.
Create New Tab
Shortcut:
Ctrl + Shift + T
Switch Between Tabs
Shortcuts:
- Next Tab:
Ctrl + Shift + Right - Previous Tab:
Ctrl + Shift + Left
Set Tab Title
Rename the current tab for better organization (e.g., "Server Logs", "Docker").
Shortcut:
Ctrl + Shift + Alt + T
Close Current Tab
Shortcut:
Ctrl + Shift + Q
Hints Kitten (Advanced Navigation)
Kitty's "Hints" system allows you to select text, URLs, and file paths directly from the terminal output without using a mouse.
Open URLs
Highlights all URLs on the screen with a letter. Press the corresponding letter to open it in your default web browser.
Shortcut:
Ctrl + Shift + E
Insert File Path
Highlights all file paths on the screen. Pressing a letter types that exact file path into your current command prompt.
Shortcut:
Ctrl + Shift + P > F
Insert Any Text (Regex Match)
Highlights words, hashes, or general text. Great for quickly copying Git commit hashes or IP addresses.
Shortcut:
Ctrl + Shift + P > H
Useful Tips
Font Size Controls
Quickly adjust readability during presentations or screen sharing:
- Increase Size:
Ctrl + Shift + Equal(or+) - Decrease Size:
Ctrl + Shift + Minus - Reset to Default:
Ctrl + Shift + Backspace
Deep Clear Terminal
Ctrl + L only clears the visible screen. To completely wipe the screen and the scrollback buffer:
Config Addition ([config_path]):
map ctrl+shift+l combine : clear_terminal scrollback active : send_text normal,application \x0c
Click to Edit Files
Hold Ctrl + Shift and click on a file path in the terminal to open it in your default editor.
💡 Tip: Ensure your shell's
lscommand outputs hyperlinks by aliasing it:alias ls="ls --hyperlink=auto"
Error Handling / Troubleshooting
Common Configuration Issues
| Problem | Description | Solution |
|---|---|---|
| Empty Scrollback | Cannot scroll up / Pager is empty | Check scrollback_lines in config (default is 2000). Increase it to 10000. |
| Missing Icons | Nerd Font glyphs look like boxes | Ensure font_family is set to a patched Nerd Font. |
| Alt-Click Fails | Cannot use Alt to modify selections | Some Linux window managers hijack the Alt key. Rebind in WM settings. |
| SSH Terminal Error | Error opening terminal: xterm-kitty | Use alias alias ssh='TERM=xterm-256color /usr/bin/ssh' or install kitty-terminfo on remote. |