How to Restore Normal Tab Cycling in Sublime Text

Zach Zach (248)
2 minutes

By default, CTRL-TAB and SHIFT-CTRL-TAB don't operate in the same way that Google Chrome's tab cycling does. For example, when you press CTRL-TAB, it doesn't always cycle to the next open document.

Here's how to restore normal tabbing functionality in Sublime Text 2, Sublime Text 3, and Sublime Text 4.

Sublime Text×1

Howchoo is reader-supported. As an Amazon Associate, we may earn a small affiliate commission at no cost to you when you buy through our links.

This can be found under preferences.

When your key bindings/keymap settings file opens up, add the following between the opening and closing brackets:

{"keys": ["ctrl+tab"], "command": "next_view"},
{"keys": ["ctrl+shift+tab"], "command": "prev_view"},

Since you've edited the Key Bindings preferences file, your settings will be saved even when you update Sublime.

If you found this page useful, you may want to check out our guide on how to open files in the same Sublime Text window to help improve your workflow.

John John (304)
2 minutes

With the release of Sublime Text 2, new files that are not in the same project are not opened in a new window. Fortunately, you can change this default behavior for Sublime Text 2 and Sublime Text 3.