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Overview

Dear ImGui uses the ImGuiKey enum which contains all possible keyboard, mouse, and gamepad inputs. The keyboard key enum values are named after the keys on a standard US keyboard.
Consider using the Shortcut() function instead of IsKeyPressed()/IsKeyChordPressed()! Shortcut() is easier to use and better featured (supports focus routing).

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Key State Functions

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IsKeyDown

bool IsKeyDown(ImGuiKey key);
Check if key is being held.
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key
ImGuiKey
Key to check (e.g., ImGuiKey_A, ImGuiKey_Space)
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Returns
bool
True if key is currently down
Example: 
if (ImGui::IsKeyDown(ImGuiKey_LeftCtrl))
{
    ImGui::Text("Ctrl is being held");
}

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IsKeyPressed

bool IsKeyPressed(ImGuiKey key, bool repeat = true);
Check if key was pressed (went from !Down to Down).
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key
ImGuiKey
Key to check
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repeat
bool
default:"true"
If true, returns true on key repeat. Repeat rate uses io.KeyRepeatDelay / io.KeyRepeatRate.
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Returns
bool
True if key was just pressed or repeating
Example: 
if (ImGui::IsKeyPressed(ImGuiKey_Enter))
{
    SubmitForm();
}

// Without repeat
if (ImGui::IsKeyPressed(ImGuiKey_Space, false))
{
    FireWeapon();
}

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IsKeyReleased

bool IsKeyReleased(ImGuiKey key);
Check if key was released (went from Down to !Down).
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key
ImGuiKey
Key to check
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Returns
bool
True if key was just released

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GetKeyPressedAmount

int GetKeyPressedAmount(ImGuiKey key, float repeat_delay, float rate);
Get a count of key presses using provided repeat rate/delay. Usually returns 0 or 1 but might be >1 if RepeatRate is small enough that DeltaTime > RepeatRate.
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key
ImGuiKey
Key to check
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repeat_delay
float
Time before repeat starts
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rate
float
Repeat rate
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Returns
int
Number of key presses this frame
Example: 
int presses = ImGui::GetKeyPressedAmount(ImGuiKey_DownArrow, 0.02f, 0.02f);
selection_index = (selection_index + presses) % item_count;

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Key Chords

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IsKeyChordPressed

bool IsKeyChordPressed(ImGuiKeyChord key_chord);
Check if a key chord (mods + key) was pressed. This doesn’t do any routing or focus check.
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key_chord
ImGuiKeyChord
Key chord (e.g., ImGuiMod_Ctrl | ImGuiKey_S)
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Returns
bool
True if the key chord was pressed
Consider using Shortcut() instead, which supports focus routing and is more feature-complete.
Example: 
if (ImGui::IsKeyChordPressed(ImGuiMod_Ctrl | ImGuiKey_S))
{
    SaveDocument();
}

if (ImGui::IsKeyChordPressed(ImGuiMod_Ctrl | ImGuiMod_Shift | ImGuiKey_Z))
{
    Redo();
}

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Key Names

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GetKeyName

const char* GetKeyName(ImGuiKey key);
Get English name of the key for debugging purposes.
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key
ImGuiKey
Key to get name for
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Returns
const char*
Key name string
These names are provided for debugging purposes and are not meant to be saved persistently nor compared.
Example: 
ImGui::Text("Press %s to continue", ImGui::GetKeyName(ImGuiKey_Enter));

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Keyboard Capture

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SetNextFrameWantCaptureKeyboard

void SetNextFrameWantCaptureKeyboard(bool want_capture_keyboard);
Override io.WantCaptureKeyboard flag next frame. Equivalent to setting io.WantCaptureKeyboard after the next NewFrame() call.
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want_capture_keyboard
bool
Whether to capture keyboard
Example: 
// Force capture keyboard when widget is hovered
if (ImGui::IsItemHovered())
{
    ImGui::SetNextFrameWantCaptureKeyboard(true);
}

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ImGuiKey Enum

enum ImGuiKey : int
{
    // Keyboard
    ImGuiKey_None = 0,
    ImGuiKey_Tab = 512,
    ImGuiKey_LeftArrow, ImGuiKey_RightArrow, ImGuiKey_UpArrow, ImGuiKey_DownArrow,
    ImGuiKey_PageUp, ImGuiKey_PageDown,
    ImGuiKey_Home, ImGuiKey_End,
    ImGuiKey_Insert, ImGuiKey_Delete,
    ImGuiKey_Backspace, ImGuiKey_Space, ImGuiKey_Enter, ImGuiKey_Escape,
    
    // Modifiers
    ImGuiKey_LeftCtrl, ImGuiKey_LeftShift, ImGuiKey_LeftAlt, ImGuiKey_LeftSuper,
    ImGuiKey_RightCtrl, ImGuiKey_RightShift, ImGuiKey_RightAlt, ImGuiKey_RightSuper,
    ImGuiKey_Menu,
    
    // Numbers
    ImGuiKey_0, ImGuiKey_1, ImGuiKey_2, ImGuiKey_3, ImGuiKey_4,
    ImGuiKey_5, ImGuiKey_6, ImGuiKey_7, ImGuiKey_8, ImGuiKey_9,
    
    // Letters
    ImGuiKey_A, ImGuiKey_B, ImGuiKey_C, ImGuiKey_D, ImGuiKey_E, ImGuiKey_F,
    ImGuiKey_G, ImGuiKey_H, ImGuiKey_I, ImGuiKey_J, ImGuiKey_K, ImGuiKey_L,
    ImGuiKey_M, ImGuiKey_N, ImGuiKey_O, ImGuiKey_P, ImGuiKey_Q, ImGuiKey_R,
    ImGuiKey_S, ImGuiKey_T, ImGuiKey_U, ImGuiKey_V, ImGuiKey_W, ImGuiKey_X,
    ImGuiKey_Y, ImGuiKey_Z,
    
    // Function keys
    ImGuiKey_F1, ImGuiKey_F2, ImGuiKey_F3, ImGuiKey_F4,
    ImGuiKey_F5, ImGuiKey_F6, ImGuiKey_F7, ImGuiKey_F8,
    ImGuiKey_F9, ImGuiKey_F10, ImGuiKey_F11, ImGuiKey_F12,
    
    // Symbols
    ImGuiKey_Apostrophe,    // '
    ImGuiKey_Comma,         // ,
    ImGuiKey_Minus,         // -
    ImGuiKey_Period,        // .
    ImGuiKey_Slash,         // /
    ImGuiKey_Semicolon,     // ;
    ImGuiKey_Equal,         // =
    ImGuiKey_LeftBracket,   // [
    ImGuiKey_Backslash,     // \
    ImGuiKey_RightBracket,  // ]
    ImGuiKey_GraveAccent,   // `
    
    // Lock keys
    ImGuiKey_CapsLock, ImGuiKey_ScrollLock, ImGuiKey_NumLock,
    ImGuiKey_PrintScreen, ImGuiKey_Pause,
    
    // Keypad
    ImGuiKey_Keypad0, ImGuiKey_Keypad1, ImGuiKey_Keypad2,
    ImGuiKey_Keypad3, ImGuiKey_Keypad4, ImGuiKey_Keypad5,
    ImGuiKey_Keypad6, ImGuiKey_Keypad7, ImGuiKey_Keypad8, ImGuiKey_Keypad9,
    ImGuiKey_KeypadDecimal, ImGuiKey_KeypadDivide,
    ImGuiKey_KeypadMultiply, ImGuiKey_KeypadSubtract,
    ImGuiKey_KeypadAdd, ImGuiKey_KeypadEnter, ImGuiKey_KeypadEqual,
    
    // Gamepad (see full list in imgui.h)
    ImGuiKey_GamepadStart, ImGuiKey_GamepadBack,
    ImGuiKey_GamepadFaceLeft, ImGuiKey_GamepadFaceRight,
    ImGuiKey_GamepadFaceUp, ImGuiKey_GamepadFaceDown,
    // ...
    
    // Mouse buttons (aliased for convenience)
    ImGuiKey_MouseLeft, ImGuiKey_MouseRight, ImGuiKey_MouseMiddle,
    ImGuiKey_MouseX1, ImGuiKey_MouseX2,
    ImGuiKey_MouseWheelX, ImGuiKey_MouseWheelY,
};

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Keyboard Modifiers

enum
{
    ImGuiMod_None   = 0,
    ImGuiMod_Ctrl   = 1 << 12,  // Ctrl (non-macOS), Cmd (macOS)
    ImGuiMod_Shift  = 1 << 13,  // Shift
    ImGuiMod_Alt    = 1 << 14,  // Alt/Option
    ImGuiMod_Super  = 1 << 15,  // Windows/Super (non-macOS), Ctrl (macOS)
};
On macOS, Dear ImGui swaps Cmd(Super) and Ctrl keys at the time of io.AddKeyEvent() call.

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Key Data Structure

struct ImGuiKeyData
{
    bool    Down;               // True if key is down
    float   DownDuration;       // Duration key has been down (<0: not pressed, 0: just pressed, >0: time held)
    float   DownDurationPrev;   // Last frame duration
    float   AnalogValue;        // 0.0f..1.0f for gamepad values
};
Access via: 
ImGuiIO& io = ImGui::GetIO();
ImGuiKeyData* key_data = &io.KeysData[key - ImGuiKey_NamedKey_BEGIN];
if (key_data->Down) { /* ... */ }
MUST use key - ImGuiKey_NamedKey_BEGIN as index when accessing KeysData[].

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Common Patterns

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Check Multiple Keys

if (ImGui::IsKeyDown(ImGuiKey_LeftCtrl) && ImGui::IsKeyPressed(ImGuiKey_C))
{
    CopyToClipboard();
}

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Smooth Movement with Keys

float speed = 100.0f * ImGui::GetIO().DeltaTime;
if (ImGui::IsKeyDown(ImGuiKey_W)) position.y -= speed;
if (ImGui::IsKeyDown(ImGuiKey_S)) position.y += speed;
if (ImGui::IsKeyDown(ImGuiKey_A)) position.x -= speed;
if (ImGui::IsKeyDown(ImGuiKey_D)) position.x += speed;

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Key Repeat for UI Navigation

if (ImGui::IsKeyPressed(ImGuiKey_UpArrow))
{
    selected_index = (selected_index - 1 + item_count) % item_count;
}
if (ImGui::IsKeyPressed(ImGuiKey_DownArrow))
{
    selected_index = (selected_index + 1) % item_count;
}

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See Also

  • Mouse - Mouse input functions
  • Shortcuts - Keyboard shortcuts and input routing
  • Input - General input and ImGuiIO functions

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