You must choose a custom keyboard shortcut that does not overlap or interfere with an existing keyboard shortcut in use on the Mac, whether in all applications or in the chosen application, respectively. That includes any capitalization, punctuation, periods, and precise text – the name entered for the keystroke absolutely must match the menu item otherwise the menu keystroke will not work. Note that you must use exact syntax for menu items to create custom keyboard shortcuts.

Go to any application with the aforementioned menu item available and pull down the menu to confirm your custom keyboard shortcut is now available for use (in this example, “Rename…” now has the custom keystroke alongside it).

Click into “Keyboard Shortcut:” and press down the exact keystroke you wish use for the keyboard shortcut you are making (in this example we are using Command+Control+R).

Next to ‘Menu Title:” type the exact name of the menu option item you wish to create a keyboard shortcut for (in our example here we are using “Rename…” from the File menu).

Next to ‘Application’ choose whether you want the keyboard shortcut to be used in all applications or a specific application (we are using ‘All Applications’ in this example).

Click on the “+” plus button to create a new keyboard shortcut on the Mac.

Choose the “Shortcuts” tab and then select ‘App Shortcuts’ from the left side menu.

From MacOS, go to the  Apple menu and choose “System Preferences” and then go to the “Keyboard” preference panel.

Here is how this excellent feature works: This works to create a custom keyboard shortcut in macOS and Mac OS X, the technique is compatible and behaves the same in basically every version of Mac OS system software dating back well over a decade. How to Make a Custom Keyboard Shortcut on Mac

This tutorial will walk through the appropriate steps to making a custom keystroke out of a menu item, it works in basically every version of Mac OS too.

This is an excellent Mac power user tip, and if you find yourself frequently accessing the same menu items within an app or all applications, consider setting up a custom keyboard shortcut for that item to speed up your workflow.

Page down shortcut on mac