Speed Up MySQL DB Operations! A Summary of Shortcuts for Sequel Ace (formerly Sequel Pro) thumbnail

Speed Up MySQL DB Operations! A Summary of Shortcuts for Sequel Ace (formerly Sequel Pro)

Here is a collection of shortcuts to help you operate Sequel Ace (formerly Sequel Pro), the MySQL database client for macOS, more efficiently.

Posted at: 2022.7.7

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Default Key Bindings

Database Operations

Let's start with the basic database operations in Sequel Ace.

ActionShortcut
List databases
ShiftCmd (⌘)D
Select a table from the database list
Duplicate and open the current tab
ShiftCmd (⌘)D

Sequel Ace is very user-friendly even with mouse operations, but using keyboard shortcuts allows you to operate databases much faster.

For example, "Duplicate and open the current tab" lets you open a new tab more quickly and without using the mouse, so it's a shortcut worth mastering.

Table Operations

Next are the table operations after entering a database.

ActionShortcut
Structure tab
Cmd (⌘)1
Content tab
Cmd (⌘)2
Relations tab
Cmd (⌘)3
Triggers tab
Cmd (⌘)4
Table info tab
Cmd (⌘)5
Query tab
Cmd (⌘)6
Filter (in Content tab)
Cmd (⌘)F
Jump to nth record
Cmd (⌘)J
Reload data
Cmd (⌘)R

Mastering tab switching after entering a table will greatly speed up your workflow in Sequel Ace and reduce stress.

In particular, since you frequently switch between the Query and Content tabs, using shortcuts instead of clicking every time is much more convenient.

Advanced Operations

By learning more advanced operations, you can make even better use of Sequel Ace.

ActionShortcut
Open console
ShiftCmd (⌘)K
Import
ShiftCmd (⌘)I
Export
ShiftCmd (⌘)E

Import and export are used more often than you might expect, such as during testing, so these are shortcuts you definitely want to remember in Sequel Ace.

Also, the "Console," where you can check your SQL query execution history, is a surprisingly useful tool. Since you don't have to copy and paste previously executed test queries into a text editor each time, it's convenient to keep it open at all times.


Many of the shortcuts in Sequel Ace (formerly Sequel Pro) are based on the initial letters of SQL commands, so they're relatively easy to remember.

When operating a MySQL server, you'll often be writing SQL statements, so being able to perform most actions from the keyboard, rather than switching to the mouse each time, will make your work much more efficient.

It might feel a little unfamiliar at first, but once you get used to it, you'll be able to perform almost all operations with shortcuts alone—so be sure to master them!