What is the Shortcut for Save As on a Mac & How to Enable it?

If you are a Windows user then you probably know about the “Save As…” Unfortunately,  the Save As option was removed from macOS a few years ago, but there are still different ways to enable and use the Save As option on a Mac. So, in this guide, you are going to learn what is the shortcut for Save As on Mac? or how to enable it?

Back in Mac OS X Lion, Apple has decided to change the way it saves Mac works. Where once you could find Save As, this was replaced by Duplicate, which created versions of the same document. It does a lot of the same things, but it can be more confusing to use for those who prefer the tried and tested method offered by Save As.

What is the Shortcut for Save As on a Mac?

So, without further delay, here are different ways to enable and use Save As on a Mac or What is the Shortcut for Save As on a Ma :

Method 1. Use the Option Key

It is surprisingly easy to access the Save As option, and it can be done without making any adjustments to your Mac at all. To find a feature, open the app that you want to use the Save As function. For the purpose of this guide, we will use the TextEdit app.

Click on the File tab in the menu bar at the top of the page. You’ll see that Save As doesn’t appear, but there is the Duplicate option instead.

Now, press and hold the Option key when the drop-down menu opens.

You will see the change of the Duplicate option to Save As. Just click on Save As with your mouse at this stage, then select the file format and save the location.

Shortcut for Save As on a Mac

Method 2. Use the Keyboard Shortcut Combination for Save As on Mac

Simply use the combination of the Option + Shift + Command + S keys in any document to trigger the Save As command directly.

Doing so will open a window allowing you to choose the file format (if applicable) as well as the location of the file to be saved.

This approach would likely be preferred by more experienced users over the previous one because it is more direct, although the main combination is a little harder to memorize.

Method 3. Create a Custom Shortcut

Although the above is perfect for occasional use, there is a way to make this happen if you want to permanently add the Save As option back to your menus. Strangely, a keyboard shortcut is created, but the results are displayed in most apps’ file drop-down menus.

Here’s how to create a shortcut for Save As on your Mac permanently:

• Open the System Preferences app from the Dock.
• Select Keyboard.

Keyboard

• Click on the Shortcuts section in the bar across the top of the window. Click App Shortcuts in the lefthand column and at last click the + button.

• Make sure All Applications is selected in the Application dropdown menu. type exactly  “Save As…” in the menu title. Make sure you type the ellipsis too. This is very important.
• In the Keyboard Shortcut box, press and hold the standard combination for Save As, which is Shift + Option + Command + S.
• At last, click Add.

From now on, the Save As option will be available by default in the File menu of all applications on your Mac.

Difference between Save, Save As, and Duplicate in macOS Apps?

Save: For applications that support file version storage, each Save not only takes the latest changes temporarily saved for the active document and writes them to a volume file but can also generate an archived version of the previous state of the file. Apple states that every hour a version is stored and then significant changes are made in a document for every moment, without being too precise about how important those changes are.

Duplicate: The File menu will show Duplicate below the Save item by default. Choosing File > Duplicate produces a copy of the file’s current state, including modifications that are not saved. The copy is a separate document that has the title of the original file plus the word ‘Copy’ as its name, and the title is highlighted. Once the title is edited, the file is saved in the same place as the original; it is temporarily stored in iCloud Drive in the meantime, usually in the location dedicated to the app you are using, such as Sites.

Save As: Press and hold the Option key and File > Repeat changes to the previous and long-running Save As menu object. Choose this option and a Save As dialog pops out to let you choose the name and destination of the file.

Save As differs from Duplicate in three ways:

1. The original file is not left open, but a new file name or location is adopted, or both, by the current window.
2. The Save As dialog allows you to select any file destination before editing it.
3. If the document contains unsaved changes, in the Save As dialog, the app has a checkbox that reads ‘Keep changes in the original document.’ If checked, the app performs a Save operation in the original file, then saves the new version and leaves it as the only window that is open and working.

Wrapping Up

That’s it. These were the 3 methods to create shortcuts and use the Save As… option on your Mac. You can follow any method above to enable Save As.

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