Tab to accept, or just keep typing.
Typeahead’s keys: Tab takes the whole suggestion, the right arrow takes one word, and Esc clears it. Change any of them to keys you prefer.
A reply, “Let’s grab lunch”, with the suggestion “on Friday.” Typing “ on ” keeps the suggestion. Typing “T” instead of “F” gives a new one, “Thursday.”, and Tab takes it.
Three keys, that’s it.
Learn them once. They work the same across your Mac apps.
Tab pressed: “Thanks, that’s really helpful.” is all in, the caret at the end.
Tab takes it all.
The whole suggestion goes in, with your caret at the end.
The right arrow pressed: one more word, “for”, is in; “Saturday at eight.” is still a suggestion.
→ takes one word.
Want only part of it? Take it a word at a time.
Esc pressed: the suggestion is gone and “See you” stays as typed.
Esc clears it.
Not what you meant? Press Esc and it’s gone.
Hold it, and it keeps going.
Hold Tab or the right arrow and the words keep coming, one after another, until you let go.
Make the keys yours.
Record a different key for any of the three in Settings, everywhere or just for one app.
Typeahead’s Shortcuts settings: Accept Suggestion, Tab; Accept Next Word, the right arrow; Dismiss Suggestion, Esc. Accept Suggestion is clicked and recorded as Option-Tab.
In detail.
What each key does, and how to change it.
Taking a suggestion.
Tab puts the whole suggestion in and leaves your caret at its end. The right arrow puts in the next word with a space after it, so you can keep typing; switch that space off in Settings › General. Hold either key and Typeahead keeps taking words, one after another, until you let go.
Typing through.
If you type the letters the suggestion shows, they’re taken from it and the rest stays put. Type something different and the suggestion steers to what you wrote. Esc clears it, and the next one comes when you carry on, at the suggestion timing you chose. The keys work the same for every suggestion, in your Mac apps.
Changing the keys.
Settings › Shortcuts lists Accept Suggestion, Accept Next Word and Dismiss Suggestion. Click one and press the keys you want, or clear it. Settings › Apps gives one app its own keys: switch Typeahead on in a terminal, where Tab already completes commands, and it uses ⌥Return and ⌥→ there. Setup and the basics are on How Typeahead works, and switching off the Mac’s own predictions is on turning autocomplete off.
Common questions
With Typeahead, press Tab. Tab takes the whole suggestion, the right arrow takes just the next word, and Esc clears it. Or keep typing: matching letters keep the suggestion and different ones steer it. All three keys can be changed in Settings › Shortcuts.
Yes. The right arrow takes the next word, with a space after it. Hold the right arrow, or Tab, and the words keep coming until you let go.
Yes. In Settings › Shortcuts, click Accept Suggestion and press the keys you want. You can also give a single app its own keys in Settings › Apps.
Nothing gets in your way. Letters that match the suggestion are taken from it and the rest stays. Type something different and a new suggestion follows what you wrote.
They’re off unless you switch Typeahead on for one, as an experimental option. In a terminal it then uses ⌥Return and ⌥→, because Tab already completes commands there.
With Typeahead, yes: Tab takes its whole suggestion and the right arrow takes one word. The Mac’s own inline predictions are a separate feature that finishes the word or phrase and takes Space instead. Typeahead points you to switching those off, so only one grey suggestion sits at your cursor.
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