Vue 3 keyboard shortcut library.

Also usable in Vue 2 with to VueDemi. For Vue 2 the @vue/composition-api is required.

Install

Install the package as a dependency in your project:

npm install --save @simolation/vue-hotkey
# or with yarn
yarn add @simolation/vue-hotkey

Supported Keys

This library supports a comprehensive set of keyboard keys and combinations:

Platform-Specific Keys

• primary - Command key on macOS, Control key on other platforms
• secondary - Control key on macOS, Alt key on other platforms

Modifier Keys

• meta - Meta/Windows/Command key
• ctrl - Control key
• alt - Alt key
• shift - Shift key
• altgraph - AltGraph key

Navigation Keys

• esc - Escape key
• enter - Enter/Return key
• tab - Tab key
• space - Space bar
• arrowup, arrowdown, arrowleft, arrowright - Arrow keys
• pageup, pagedown - Page navigation
• home, end - Home and End keys

Action Keys

• del - Delete key
• backspace - Backspace key
• insert - Insert key

Lock Keys

• numlock, capslock, scrolllock - Toggle keys

Function Keys

• f1 through f12 - Function keys

Regular Characters

• All letters (a-z), numbers (0-9), and symbols are supported
• Keys are case-insensitive and automatically normalized

Alternative Key Names

The library supports alternative names for common keys:

Basic Keys:

• delete or del - Delete key
• escape or esc - Escape key
• return or enter - Enter/Return key
• spacebar or space - Space bar
• ins or insert - Insert key

Arrow Keys:

• up/down/left/right or arrowup/arrowdown/arrowleft/arrowright

Modifier Keys:

• control or ctrl - Control key
• command/cmd or meta - Meta/Command key
• option/opt or alt - Alt/Option key
• windows/win/super or meta - Windows/Super key

Page Navigation:

• pgup/pgdn/pgdown/pagedn or pageup/pagedown

Lock Keys:

• caps or capslock - Caps Lock key
• num or numlock - Num Lock key
• scroll or scrolllock - Scroll Lock key

Other Keys:

• context/menu or contextmenu - Context Menu key
• function/fn - Function key

Key Combinations

Combine keys using arrays: ['ctrl', 's'], ['primary', 'shift', 'n'], ['alt', 'f4'], ['delete']

Usage

This package can be used as a Vue component or as a hook.

Use as a Vue component

The idea behind the component is to wrap, for example, a button with the Hotkey component to have a strong connection between the element, which would trigger the action without the hotkey. There will be no hotkey code scattered throughout your application.

Import the Hotkey component in your Vue file:

import { Hotkey } from "@simolation/vue-hotkey";

Register it as a component:

export default defineComponent({
  // ...
  components: {
    Hotkey,
  },
  // ...
  setup() {
    return {
      // This is the action that will be triggered when the hotkey is activated
      action: () => {
        console.log("Ctrl + s has been pressed!");
      },
    };
  },
});

Use it in your template:

<template>
  <Hotkey :keys="['ctrl', 's']" @hotkey="action">
    <!-- any content -->
  </Hotkey>
</template>

Click or focus element

It is also possible to click or focus the slot element:

<Hotkey :keys="['ctrl', 's']" v-slot="{ clickRef }">
  <button :ref="clickRef" @click="action">Hotkey or click</button>
</Hotkey>

<Hotkey :keys="['ctrl', 's']" v-slot="{ focusRef }">
  <input :ref="focusRef" type="text" />
</Hotkey>

Allow propagation

By default, the hotkey prevents the default action and is not propagated to the parent. With :propagate="true" the event will be passed to the parent listeners as well and trigger the default action.

<template>
  <Hotkey :keys="['ctrl', 's']" propagate @hotkey="action">
    <!-- any content -->
  </Hotkey>
</template>

Enable or Disable the hotkey

When the hotkey should not be usable, it can easily be disabled by setting disabled.

<template>
  <Hotkey :keys="['ctrl', 's']" disabled @hotkey="action">
    <!-- any content -->
  </Hotkey>
</template>

Exclude HTML elements

By default, input and textarea fields are excluded. This can be overwritten and changed by specifying the :excluded-elements="['radio', 'div']" option. It will prevent the hotkey when the currently focused HTML element is of the specified type.

<template>
  <Hotkey
    :keys="['ctrl', 's']"
    :excluded-elements="['radio', 'div']"
    @hotkey="action"
  >
    <!-- any content -->
  </Hotkey>
</template>

Priority system

Control the order in which hotkeys are executed when multiple components register the same hotkey. Higher priority numbers take precedence. Useful for modals, popups, and overlays.

<template>
  <!-- Base application ESC handler (low priority) -->
  <Hotkey :keys="['esc']" :priority="0" @hotkey="closeApp">
    <!-- app content -->
  </Hotkey>

  <!-- Modal ESC handler (higher priority) -->
  <Hotkey :keys="['esc']" :priority="100" @hotkey="closeModal" v-if="showModal">
    <!-- modal content -->
  </Hotkey>

  <!-- Popup ESC handler (highest priority) -->
  <Hotkey :keys="['esc']" :priority="200" @hotkey="closePopup" v-if="showPopup">
    <!-- popup content -->
  </Hotkey>
</template>

When multiple hotkeys with the same key combination are registered:

1. Higher priority executes first - Priority 200 runs before priority 100
2. Same priority uses registration order - Newer registrations take precedence
3. Only one handler executes - Unless propagate is enabled

Key check

Only call a function when the hotkey is pressed. Can be used for special on-click actions based on a hotkey.

<template>
  <Hotkey :keys="['alt']" v-slot="{ keyCheck }">
    <button @click="keyCheck(onClick)">Click</button>
  </Hotkey>
</template>

Use as a hook

When there is no specific element tied to the hotkey, it can be used as a hook with useHotkey():

import { useHotkey } from "@simolation/vue-hotkey";

useHotkey({
  keys: ["ctrl" + "s"],
  handler: () => {
    console.log("Ctrl + s has been pressed!");
  },
  // optional:
  propagate: ref(false),
  enabled: ref(true),
  priority: 100, // Higher numbers = higher priority
});

Enable or Disable the hotkey

The hook returns three functions to enable, disable or destroy the hotkey. The hotkey does not need to be destroyed onUnmount, as the hook already takes care of that.

const { enable, disable, destroy } = useHotkey({ ... })

// Enable or disable the hotkey
enable()
// or
disable()

// Completely destroy the hotkey. It can not be enabled() again.
destroy()

Exclude HTML elements

The excluded elements can be specified with the hook as well. The default is again input and textarea.

useHotkey(
  {
    keys: ["ctrl" + "s"],
    handler: () => {
      console.log("Ctrl + s has been pressed!");
    },
  },
  ["radio", "div"]
);

Key check function

The function provided as a parameter to the keyCheckFn will only be called when the hotkey is pressed when calling the returned function

const { keyCheckFn } = useHotkey({ ... });

const doSomething = keyCheckFn((name: string, count: number) => {
  // do anything while the hotkey is pressed when doSomething is called
})

doSomething("myProps", 123);

Priority with hooks

Use priority to control the execution order when multiple hooks register the same hotkey:

// Base level hotkey (default priority 0)
useHotkey({
  keys: ["esc"],
  handler: () => console.log("Base ESC handler"),
});

// Modal hotkey (higher priority)
useHotkey({
  keys: ["esc"], 
  handler: () => console.log("Modal ESC handler"),
  priority: 100,
});

// Only the modal handler will execute (highest priority)
// Unless propagate: ref(true) is set