ASTRONEER Keyboard Controls & Shortcuts Guide
Here is a complete list of PC keyboard and mouse bindings and shortcuts for the space survival sandbox game, ASTRONEER. This guide explains everything from basic movement and exploration to excavating, building, and flattening with the Terrain Tool. It also covers quick tether placement, backpack and research catalog usage, as well as vehicle and equipment slot controls.
Posted at: 2026.9.14
Movement and Exploration
Avatar movement in ASTRONEER uses the standard PC gaming WASD layout. The keybindings follow typical FPS/TPS conventions, including holding Left Shift to sprint, Spacebar to jump, and Left Ctrl to walk (which also toggles the interact cursor).
To look around, right-click and drag the camera; to zoom in and out, use the scroll wheel. Once you get used to the controls, moving and surveying your surroundings will feel completely second nature.
Two absolute essentials during exploration are placing oxygen tethers and using the quick action menu.
If you have a bundle of tethers in your backpack, simply press "T" to drop one at your feet automatically. Skipping the need to open your backpack manually makes this your most critical shortcut for cave expeditions and long treks across the surface.
The quick action menu is mapped to holding "R." Because it sits right next to WASD, it's easy to access from your left hand's home position, keeping your exploration moving without interruptions.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Move forward | W |
| Move backward | S |
| Move left | A |
| Move right | D |
| Jump into the air or over obstacles | Space |
| Hold while moving to sprint at higher speed | Shift |
| Hold to walk slowly or enable the interaction cursor | Ctrl |
| Place an oxygen tether at your feet if tethers are available in your backpack | T |
| Hold right click and drag to rotate the camera view | Right Click |
| Scroll mouse wheel to zoom camera in or out | WHEEL |
| Hold R to open the contextual Action Wheel menu | R |
| Hold G to open the Emote Selection Wheel | G |
Backpack, Terrain Tool, and Research
Here are the controls for managing your gear and operating the Terrain Tool—the cornerstone of planetary expansion.
Open your backpack with "Q," and equip or holster the Terrain Tool with "E." Both keys sit directly above WASD for quick access with your left hand. It's well worth tapping them back and forth early on just to build up the muscle memory.
With the Terrain Tool in hand, left-click to dig into the ground and harvest resources. You can also hold modifier keys to switch modes on the fly:
- Hold Alt: Add terrain (deposit soil and build ramps)
- Hold Ctrl: Flatten terrain (level surfaces for base building or carve out clean paths)
Combining these modifiers with left-click is essential for efficient terraforming.
Other handy shortcuts include "Shift + Left Click" to instantly stash a held item into an open backpack slot, "F" to interact with or activate machinery and modules, and "Tab" to bring up the Research Catalog and unlock new schematics. To back out of menus or open the pause screen, press "Esc."
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Toggle the visibility of your Astroneer backpack | Q |
| Equip or stow away the Terrain Tool | E |
| Use the Terrain Tool to excavate and mine resources | Left Click |
| Hold Alt while using Terrain Tool to add and build up soil | Alt |
| Hold Ctrl while using Terrain Tool to flatten and smooth terrain | Ctrl |
| Toggle the Research Catalog to unlock new crafting blueprints with Bytes | Tab |
| Instantly store a held item into an available backpack slot | ShiftLeft Click |
| Interact with or activate objects, modules, and buttons | F |
| Close any open catalog or backpack UI, or open the pause menu | ESC |
Vehicles and Equipment Slots
The auxiliary slots on the top of your backpack and on vehicles (rovers, tractors, shuttles, etc.) can be triggered directly with a single keypress:
- "C": Activate the left auxiliary slot (toggle worklights, thrusters, drill mods, etc.)
- "V": Activate the right auxiliary slot
Equipping utility items like a worklight, portable oxygenator, or paver onto these slots lets you toggle them seamlessly while driving or running. Because C and V sit directly below the WASD cluster, you can tap them quickly without disrupting movement.
To enter or exit vehicles, shelters, and rover seats, look at your target and hold "F" (legacy controls or specific interactive targets may still respond to "E"). Along with C and V, this is a core binding every driver should have down.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Activate the left auxiliary slot item on your backpack or vehicle | C |
| Activate the right auxiliary slot item on your backpack or vehicle | V |
| Hold to enter or exit vehicles, seats, and rockets | F |
| Enter or exit vehicles and seats (Legacy binding or context target) | E |
Creative Mode Controls
These shortcuts are exclusive to Creative Mode, giving you total freedom to sculpt terrain and construct builds effortlessly.
Unlike Survival Mode, double-tapping Spacebar toggles flight mode, which is indispensable for large-scale building and surveying your creations from above.
To duplicate a held item, hold Ctrl and left-drag it; to delete objects on the spot, press "Delete." You can also launch or recall the camera drone at any time with "Shift + Z"—perfect for wide landscape photography and time-lapse recordings.
Since Creative Mode is all about speed and experimentation, getting these efficiency keys down will streamline your workflow significantly.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Double tap Space in Creative Mode to toggle flight | SpaceSpace |
| Launch or recall the Creative Mode camera drone | ShiftZ |
| Duplicate a held item in Creative Mode by dragging with Ctrl | CtrlLeft Click |
| Instantly delete a currently held item in Creative Mode | Delete |