# Menus and toolbars

As you work with the IDE, you perform some actions more often than the others. To maximize your productivity, [learn the default shortcuts](mastering-keyboard-shortcuts.html)  for your favorite actions or [assign shortcuts](configuring-keyboard-and-mouse-shortcuts.html) for them. You can also customize the menus and toolbars to only contain the actions that you need, regroup them, and configure their icons.

For example, if you work with a Java project, you might want to remove other framework files that you do not use from the `File | New` menu to keep that part of the menu shorter and leave only the needed options.

> **Tip:**
> To quickly access your favorite files, directories, bookmarks, and breakpoints, use the [Bookmarks](bookmarks.html) tool window.

Procedure: Customize menus and toolbars

1. Press `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Windows), `⌘ Comma` (macOS), `⌘ Comma` (IntelliJ IDEA Classic (macOS)), `⌘ Comma` (macOS System Shortcuts), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (XWin), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (GNOME), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (KDE), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Emacs), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Sublime Text), `⌘ Comma` (Sublime Text (macOS)), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (NetBeans), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Visual Studio), `⌘ Comma` (Visual Studio (macOS)), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Eclipse), `⌘ Comma` (Eclipse (macOS)) to open settings and then select `Appearance & Behavior | Menus and Toolbars`.

![the Menus and Toolbars settings](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/settings_menus_toolbars.png)

2. In the list of available menus and toolbars, expand the node you want to customize and select the desired item:

* Click Add to add an action or a separator under the selected item.

* Click ![the Edit Icon button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app-client.expui.general.edit.svg) to [add or change the icon](#custom-icons-menu) for the selected action.

* Click ![the Move Up button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app-client.expui.general.moveUp.svg) or ![the Move Down button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app-client.expui.general.moveDown.svg) to move the selected item up or down. By doing so, you can change the action's location in the menu.

* Click ![the Remove button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app.resharper.expui.Common.Remove.png) to remove the selected item.

* Click ![the Restore button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app.expui.vcs.revert.svg) to restore the selected action or all actions to default settings.

3. Click OK to save your changes.

Procedure: Configure custom icons for menu options

1. Press `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Windows), `⌘ Comma` (macOS), `⌘ Comma` (IntelliJ IDEA Classic (macOS)), `⌘ Comma` (macOS System Shortcuts), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (XWin), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (GNOME), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (KDE), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Emacs), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Sublime Text), `⌘ Comma` (Sublime Text (macOS)), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (NetBeans), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Visual Studio), `⌘ Comma` (Visual Studio (macOS)), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Eclipse), `⌘ Comma` (Eclipse (macOS)) to open settings and then select `Appearance & Behavior | Menus and Toolbars`.

2. Select the menu option for which you want to change or add an icon and click ![Edit icon](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app-client.expui.general.edit.svg).

3. Select an icon from the list or click ![Browse](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app-client.expui.inline.browse.svg) to upload your own icon.

![Selecting icon from the list](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/custom-menu-icon.png)

You can use only PNG or SVG files as icons. The [IntelliJ IDEA Community Edition repository](https://github.com/JetBrains/intellij-community/tree/master/platform/icons/src) contains most of the icons used in the IDE.

## Customize the main toolbar

Procedure: Quickly add actions to the toolbar

If you miss an action on the main toolbar, you can add it from the list of popular actions.

* Right-click the toolbar, point to Add Action to Main Toolbar, and select the action that you want to add from the list.

If the action that you want to add is not on the list of popular actions, use the [Customize Main Toolbar](#configure-toolbar-actions) dialog.

![Adding actions to main toolbar](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/quickly_add_toolbar_actions.png)

The selected action appears on the toolbar. You can remove it or change its icon using the [Customize Main Toolbar](#configure-toolbar-actions) dialog.

Procedure: Configure main toolbar actions

Use this option to access all available actions that can be added to the main toolbar. It also allows you to change icons for toolbar actions and remove actions from the toolbar.

1. Right-click the toolbar and click Customize Toolbar….

2. In the list of available toolbar sections, expand the node you want to customize and select the desired item:

* Click Add to add an action or a separator under the selected item.

* Click ![the Remove button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app.resharper.expui.Common.Remove.png) to remove the selected item.

* Click ![the Edit Icon button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app-client.expui.general.edit.svg) to [add or change the icon](#custom-icons-menu) for the selected action.

* Click ![the Move Up button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app-client.expui.general.moveUp.svg) or ![the Move Down button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app-client.expui.general.moveDown.svg) to move the selected item up or down. By doing so, you can change the action's location in the menu.

* Click ![the Restore button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app.expui.vcs.revert.svg) to restore the selected action or all actions to default settings.

3. Click OK to save your changes.

Procedure: Configure the toolbar color

Use colored headers to simplify navigation between several open projects. You can assign a unique color and [icon](#change-project-icon) to each of your projects, making it easier to distinguish them in your workspace.

By default, the IDE picks the color that matches the color of the project [icon](#change-project-icon), but you can set your own color.

1. Right-click the toolbar, select  Change Project Color , and choose one of the pre-defined colors from the list.

![Configuring the main toolbar color](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/change_main_toolbar_color.png)

2. If you want to use a different color, click Custom Color and select a shade using the color picker that opens.

To turn the feature off, right-click the toolbar and disable the Show Project Gradient option. You can also disable colors in settings: press `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Windows), `⌘ Comma` (macOS), `⌘ Comma` (IntelliJ IDEA Classic (macOS)), `⌘ Comma` (macOS System Shortcuts), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (XWin), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (GNOME), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (KDE), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Emacs), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Sublime Text), `⌘ Comma` (Sublime Text (macOS)), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (NetBeans), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Visual Studio), `⌘ Comma` (Visual Studio (macOS)), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Eclipse), `⌘ Comma` (Eclipse (macOS)), select `Appearance & Behavior | Appearance` and disable Use project colors in main toolbar.

Procedure: Change the project icon

1. Right-click the toolbar and click Set Custom Project Icon.

2. In the dialog that opens, click Choose SVG file and specify the path to the SVG file that you want to use as an icon.

3. Click OK to save your changes.

Procedure: Hide the toolbar

If you prefer to have less visual clutter in your IDE window, you can hide the toolbar.

* In the main menu, go to `View | Appearance` and disable Toolbar.

When the toolbar is hidden, the IDE window header has a plain look without any IntelliJ IDEA widgets or controls.

![IDE window with the toolbar hidden](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/ide_without_toolbar.png)

## Customize the main menu (Windows and Linux)

The main menu is the standard menu bar of the application window with File, Edit, View, and other menus.

By default, the main menu is hidden under the hamburger icon ![](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app.expui.general.windowsMenu%4020x20.svg) on Windows and Linux. You can configure the IDE to display the main menu as a separate toolbar or merged with the main toolbar.

Procedure:

* Press `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Windows), `⌘ Comma` (macOS), `⌘ Comma` (IntelliJ IDEA Classic (macOS)), `⌘ Comma` (macOS System Shortcuts), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (XWin), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (GNOME), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (KDE), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Emacs), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Sublime Text), `⌘ Comma` (Sublime Text (macOS)), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (NetBeans), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Visual Studio), `⌘ Comma` (Visual Studio (macOS)), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Eclipse), `⌘ Comma` (Eclipse (macOS)) to open settings and then select `Appearance & Behavior | Appearance`.  Enable the Merge with Main Toolbar or Show above Main Toolbar option.

* Alternatively, go to `View | Appearance | Main Menu` in the main menu and enable Merge with Main Toolbar or Show above Main Toolbar.

Hide under Hamburger Button:

![Main menu is hidden](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/new_ui_main_menu_hidden.png)

Merge with Main Toolbar:

![Main menu merged with a toolbar](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/main-menu-toolbar-merged.png)

Show above Main Toolbar:

![Main menu as a separate toolbar](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/new_ui_main_menu_shown.png)

Procedure: Expand the main menu with the keyboard

To expand the main menu hidden under the hamburger icon ![](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app.expui.general.windowsMenu%4020x20.svg) using the keyboard, do one of the following:

* Press `Alt+\` (Windows), `Alt+\` (macOS), `Alt+\` (IntelliJ IDEA Classic (macOS)), `Alt+\` (macOS System Shortcuts), `Alt+\` (XWin), `Alt+\` (GNOME), `Alt+\` (KDE), `Alt+\` (Emacs), `Alt+\` (Sublime Text), `Alt+\` (Sublime Text (macOS)), `Alt+\` (NetBeans), `Alt+.` (Visual Studio), `Alt+\` (Visual Studio (macOS)), `Alt+\` (Eclipse), `Alt+\` (Eclipse (macOS)). The main menu expands and the first item on it opens.

* Press the mnemonic of a top-level menu item. For example, `Alt``F` expands the main menu and opens the File menu.

## Show and hide UI elements

If you have a small monitor, you can hide some of the UI elements that you never use. These elements are described in [User interface](guided-tour-around-the-user-interface.html).

Procedure:

* In the main menu, go to `View | Appearance`  and enable or disable the necessary elements.

![The View | Appearance menu](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/ij_view-appearance.png)

* Toolbar: Located in the window header, this is the main toolbar with widgets for switching between projects, working with VCS branches, and running configurations. The toolbar is [configurable](#customize-main-toolbar): you can add and remove widgets and buttons.

* Navigation Bar: Located in [Status Bar](#status-bar), it allows you to navigate the directories and files of your project with `Alt+Home` (Windows), `⌘ ↑` (macOS), `⌥ Home` (IntelliJ IDEA Classic (macOS)), `⌘ ⌃ ↑` (macOS System Shortcuts), `Alt+Home` (XWin), `Alt+Home` (GNOME), `Alt+Home` (KDE), `Alt+Home` (Emacs), `Alt+Home` (Sublime Text), `⌥ Home` (Sublime Text (macOS)), `Alt+Home` (NetBeans), `Ctrl+F2` (Visual Studio), `⌘ F2` (Visual Studio (macOS)), `Alt+Home` (Eclipse), `⌘ ⌥ B` (Eclipse (macOS)) as an alternative to the Project tool window. See [Navigation bar](guided-tour-around-the-user-interface.html#navigation-bar). Use the submenu to change the location of the bar or enable displaying fields and methods.

* Tool Window Bars: Located on the edges of the window, these bars contain buttons for showing, hiding, and arranging the tool windows. See [Tool window bars and buttons](tool-windows.html#bars_and_buttons).

* Status Bar: Located at the bottom of the window, it shows event messages, indicates the overall project and IDE status, and provides quick access to some settings via widgets. See [Status bar](guided-tour-around-the-user-interface.html#status-bar).

* Status Bar Widgets: Located in the right part of the status bar. You can also right-click the status bar to show and hide widgets.

## Quick lists with your favorite actions

A quick list is a popup that contains a custom set of IntelliJ IDEA actions. Think of it as a custom menu or toolbar, for which you can assign a shortcut for quick access. You can create as many quick lists as necessary. Each action in a quick list is identified by a number from 0 through 9.

There are a number of predefined quick lists, but note that they are not configurable:

* Refactor this `Ctrl+Alt+Shift+T` (Windows), `⌃ T` (macOS), `⌘ ⌥ ⇧ T` (IntelliJ IDEA Classic (macOS)), `⌃ S` (macOS System Shortcuts), `Ctrl+Alt+Shift+T` (XWin), `Ctrl+Alt+Shift+T` (GNOME), `Ctrl+Alt+Shift+T` (KDE), `Ctrl+Alt+Shift+T` (Emacs), `Ctrl+Alt+Shift+T` (Sublime Text), `⌃ T` (Sublime Text (macOS)), `Ctrl+Alt+Shift+T` (NetBeans), `Ctrl+Shift+R` (Visual Studio), `⌘ ⇧ R` (Visual Studio (macOS)), `Ctrl+Alt+Shift+T` (Eclipse), `⌃ T` (Eclipse (macOS))

* VCS Operations `Alt+`` (Windows), `⌃ V` (macOS), `⌃ V` (IntelliJ IDEA Classic (macOS)), `⌃ C` (macOS System Shortcuts), `Alt+`` (XWin), `Alt+`` (GNOME), `Alt+`` (KDE), `Alt+`` (Emacs), `Alt+`` (Sublime Text), `Alt+`` (Sublime Text (macOS)), `Alt+`` (NetBeans), `Ctrl+Alt+Q` (Visual Studio), `⌃ V` (Visual Studio (macOS)), `Alt+`` (Eclipse), `⌃ V` (Eclipse (macOS))

For example, you can create a list of actions that do not have shortcuts assigned to them and refer to that list by one shortcut followed by the number associated with a specific action.  You can also create a quick list of your favorite Gradle tasks or a list of different run configurations that you can invoke with one shortcut.

Procedure: Create a quick list

1. Press `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Windows), `⌘ Comma` (macOS), `⌘ Comma` (IntelliJ IDEA Classic (macOS)), `⌘ Comma` (macOS System Shortcuts), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (XWin), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (GNOME), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (KDE), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Emacs), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Sublime Text), `⌘ Comma` (Sublime Text (macOS)), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (NetBeans), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Visual Studio), `⌘ Comma` (Visual Studio (macOS)), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Eclipse), `⌘ Comma` (Eclipse (macOS)) to open settings and then select `Appearance & Behavior | Quick Lists`.

2. Click ![the Add button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app.expui.general.add.svg) or press `Alt+Insert` (Windows), `⌘ N` (macOS), `⌃ N` (IntelliJ IDEA Classic (macOS)), `⌘ N` (macOS System Shortcuts), `Alt+Insert` (XWin), `Alt+Insert` (GNOME), `Alt+Insert` (KDE), `Alt+Insert` (Emacs), `Ctrl+N` (Sublime Text), `⌘ N` (Sublime Text (macOS)), `Alt+Insert` (NetBeans), `Ctrl+N` (Visual Studio), `⌘ N` (Visual Studio (macOS)), `Alt+Insert` (Eclipse), `⌘ N` (Eclipse (macOS)) on the left pane to create a new quick list.

3. In the Display name field, specify the name of the quick list. Optionally, provide the quick list description.

4. On the right pane, add and arrange the actions on the quick list:

* Click ![the Add button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app.expui.general.add.svg) to add an action or a separator under the selected item.

* Click ![the Remove button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app.expui.general.remove.svg) to remove the selected item.

* Click ![the Add Separator button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app-client.expui.general.separatorHorizontal.svg) to add a separator line.

* Click ![the Move Up button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app-client.expui.general.moveUp.svg) or ![the Move Down button](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/app-client.expui.general.moveDown.svg) to move the selected item up or down. By doing so, you can change the action's location in the menu.

![the Quick lists settings](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/configure_quick_list.png)

5. Click OK to save the changes.

Procedure: Assign a shortcut to a quick list

1. Press `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Windows), `⌘ Comma` (macOS), `⌘ Comma` (IntelliJ IDEA Classic (macOS)), `⌘ Comma` (macOS System Shortcuts), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (XWin), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (GNOME), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (KDE), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Emacs), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Sublime Text), `⌘ Comma` (Sublime Text (macOS)), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (NetBeans), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Visual Studio), `⌘ Comma` (Visual Studio (macOS)), `Ctrl+Alt+S` (Eclipse), `⌘ Comma` (Eclipse (macOS)) to open settings and then select `Keymap`.

2. Expand the Quick Lists node and select your quick list. Add a keyboard shortcut and save the changes.

![Keymap settings for quick lists](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/quick_list_shortcut.png)

For more information, refer to [Configure keyboard shortcuts](configuring-keyboard-and-mouse-shortcuts.html).

3. Click OK to save the changes.

In the editor, access the quick list by the associated shortcut.

If you don't remember the shortcut, you can search for your quick list by its name. Press `Shift` (Windows), `Shift` (macOS), `Shift` (IntelliJ IDEA Classic (macOS)), `Shift` (macOS System Shortcuts), `Shift` (XWin), `Shift` (GNOME), `Shift` (KDE), `Shift` (Emacs), `Shift` (Sublime Text), `Shift` (Sublime Text (macOS)), `Shift` (NetBeans), `Shift` (Visual Studio), `Shift` (Visual Studio (macOS)), `Shift` (Eclipse), `Shift` (Eclipse (macOS)) twice and type the name of the quick list.

![The search everywhere window](https://resources.jetbrains.com.cn/help/img/idea/2026.2/search_for_quick_lists.png)