Flow Control / Video speed keyboard shortcuts for Chrome

Video speed keyboard shortcuts for Chrome

Adjust playback without opening a menu: use brackets to change speed and hold apostrophe for a temporary boost.

The three shortcuts

These are Flow Control’s shortcuts, not built-in Chrome shortcuts. Install the extension first and reload any video tabs that were already open. The current version uses fixed keys; it does not provide a key-remapping screen.

Set up hold-to-boost

1. Open the Flow Control popup on a video site.
2. Choose your regular playback speed, for example 1.5x.
3. Enter 3 in Holding Speed and select Set.
4. Click the page outside a text field and hold the apostrophe key.
5. Release the key to return to 1.5x.

Choose a holding rate faster than your regular rate if you want a boost. Holding Speed is configurable from 0.25x to 8x, so you can also choose a slower rate when you want to inspect a section carefully.

Why a shortcut might not respond

Shortcuts avoid ordinary text-entry fields so you can type brackets or apostrophes in comments and search boxes. Move focus out of the field and try again. A video inside an embedded frame may need focus inside that player. Keyboard layouts can produce different characters, and some websites intercept the same keys.

If the problem remains, use the popup controls, check extension site access, and reload the tab. Include your browser version, keyboard layout, and the affected page when reporting an issue; leave out private page data.

Return to normal playback

Use Reset to default in the popup to restore the default configuration, including 1x playback and 2x holding speed. To use the website’s native speed controls, disable Flow Control in your browser’s extension settings and reload the tab.

Try Flow Control

Free and open source. No account required. For desktop Chrome and compatible Chromium browsers.

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Related guides

• Set a custom YouTube playback speed
• Remember video speed for each site