How to right click using Keyboard on Mac

There are plenty of ways to use a Mac effectively without resorting to using a Mac at all. The number of keyboard shortcuts and bindings available out there makes it rather easy for users to perform a lot of tasks in the system. But there is one shortcut that has been unavailable in the Mac which is a point of annoyance for many.

This is the option to perform a right-click by using a Mac. This option is available on Windows keyboards for a long time. Doing the things that have been given below will help you understand how you can use a right click on a Mac keyboard without having to use a mouse.

Though the option to use the right click by configuring the keyboard has been available, this has been limited to the location where the mouse cursor is as opposed to the file, folder, URL or word that you have selected. But we can conclude that there are three distinct ways in which you can perform a right click on a highlighted item without moving your mouse cursor there.

The method that you can make use of to be able to perform right clicks on a Mac involves making use of the Apple Script and an Automator, the steps that you will need to follow in order to achieve what you need are as follows:

a) Access Automator and then Create a new service by choosing 'Contextual Workflow.’

b) In the drop-down box available next to Workflow receives, you need to choose 'no input’ and make sure that the next drop-down box reads 'any application.’

c) In Automator, make use of the search bar to search for “run AppleScript.” Drag and drop this into the Automator workflow.

d) Replace the comment that says “your script goes here” with the following comment:

tell application "System Events" to set frontApp to name of the first process whose frontmost is true

tell application "System Events"

tell application process frontApp

set _selection to value of attribute "AXFocusedUIElement"

tell _selection to perform action "AXShowMenu"

end tell

end tell

e) After you have done the steps given above, save the workflow with a suitable name, the one that I am using is called “Right Clicker”

f) Go to System Preferences, and then Keyboard > Shortcuts > Services. Scroll down and then find the service that you have just created.

g) Click on the option called 'Add Shortcut’ to set a keyboard shortcut to the service. When you do assign a keyboard shortcut, make sure that it’s not a system keyboard shortcut like “command+space” or “command+control+Q.”

h) The next thing that you need to do is go to System Preferences > Security and Privacy > Privacy > Accessibility.

i) You will need to touch the Plus icon to add a new app. You will need to select 'Automator’ and then add it to the list of apps that is able to control your computer.

j) You will also need to add each app where you wish to make use of this keyboard into the list.

After performing the steps given above, you will be able to successfully perform right clicks using a Mac keyboard.