A new folder without the right-click: Ctrl+Shift+N

Right-click → New → Folder → type a name. Most people run through this sequence several times a day for years without ever suspecting there's a shortcut for it. Ctrl+Shift+N creates a new folder in File Explorer with one press — and with the name already selected as “New folder,” so you start typing and the name is done. Small thing? Sure. But a small thing you do a thousand times a year.

How to do it

1. Open File Explorer (Win + E) and navigate to where you want the folder. It works on the desktop too.
2. Press Ctrl + Shift + N — a new folder appears with an editable name.
3. Just start typing the name (nothing to delete — the text “New folder” is already selected) and confirm with Enter.
4. If you need to fill the folder right away, pressing Enter after naming keeps you in the current view — enter the folder with a second Enter, or drag files straight into it.
5. Worth knowing this shortcut's sibling too: Ctrl + N opens a second Explorer window on the same folder — ideal for dragging files between two locations.

A typical scenario

You're starting a new project and setting up the structure: a client folder, and inside it “Materials,” “Drafts,” “Invoices,” “Communication.” Via right-click, that's sixteen precise mouse clicks and a fair bit of patience. With the shortcut: Ctrl+Shift+N, type a name, Enter, repeat — four folders in twenty seconds, hands never leaving the keyboard.

The same applies when saving from apps: the “Save As” dialog in most programs supports the shortcut too, so if you discover mid-save that the target folder doesn't exist yet, you create it on the spot — no switching to Explorer and hunting for where you actually were.

What you get out of it

• Speed where it matters most: creating a folder is one of the most common operations in File Explorer — and four mouse steps become one keypress.
• Flow: a new project's folder structure comes together in one continuous stretch of typing instead of a series of clicks.
• Works in dialogs too: creating a folder right inside the “Save As” window means you save the file in the right place immediately, instead of “on the desktop for now.”

Pro tip

Tidiness is a side effect: when creating a folder costs nothing, you stop putting off organizing “for later,” and files land exactly where they belong right away. It pairs nicely with Win+E for instantly opening Explorer — together they form a sequence you can do blind: Win+E, jump to projects, Ctrl+Shift+N, name, Enter. A new structure for anything new exists before a right-click context menu would even finish loading.