What is the Mac equivalent of Win+E?

There isn't a direct one. Command+N opens a new Finder window, but only while Finder is the frontmost app. From any other app, Command+N does that app's New command — a new document, a new tab, a new message.

How do I open Finder from another app?

Click the Finder icon at the left end of the Dock, or press Command+Tab and hold Command while pressing Tab until Finder is highlighted. Finder is always running and is always the leftmost Dock icon, so it cannot be quit or removed.

Why does Command+N not open Finder?

Because Command+N belongs to whichever app is in front. macOS scopes almost every shortcut to the active app, unlike Windows, where the Windows key combinations are handled by the system and work from anywhere.

Is there a shortcut to open a Finder window from anywhere?

Not in macOS itself. Switchover adds one: Control+Option+E brings Finder forward and opens a new window in a single press, from any app, which is what Win+E does on Windows.

30 September 2026 · 4 minute read

Win+E on a Mac: how to open a new Finder window from anywhere

On Windows, ⊞+E opens File Explorer. It works in the middle of anything — a browser, a spreadsheet, a game — because Windows handles it at the system level. On a Mac the same reflex produces nothing, or worse, something unexpected.

Why Command+N is not the answer people think it is

Search this and you will be told the answer is ⌘+N. That is only half true, and the missing half is the reason it keeps not working.

⌘+N opens a new Finder window only when Finder is already the frontmost app. macOS scopes nearly every shortcut to the active application. So from your browser, ⌘+N is a new browser window. From Mail it is a new message. From Pages, a new document.

This is the single biggest difference in how the two systems handle the keyboard. On Windows the ⊞ combinations belong to the system. On macOS, almost everything belongs to the app in front of you.

What to actually press

Two steps, and the first one is unavoidable in stock macOS:

Bring Finder forward. Click the Finder icon at the far left of the Dock — it is always there, always running, and cannot be quit. Or hold ⌘ and press Tab until Finder is highlighted.
Press ⌘+N.

Worth knowing: if Finder is already frontmost but you cannot see a window, there may not be one. Closing the last Finder window does not quit Finder, it just leaves it running with nothing open. ⌘+N at that point gives you one back.

Choosing where new windows open

By default a new Finder window opens at Recents, which most switchers dislike. To change it: with Finder in front, open the Finder menu, choose Settings, then General, then set New Finder windows show to your home folder, Documents, or wherever you actually start.

While you are there, ticking Hard disks and External disks under the Sidebar tab puts your drives back in the sidebar, which is closer to the This PC view you are used to.

Two shortcuts worth learning instead

You want	Press	Notes
A Finder search window, from anywhere	`⌥`+`⌘`+`Space`	The closest thing macOS has to a global Win+E — it opens a Finder window with the search field focused, from any app
Go to a folder by typing its path	`⇧`+`⌘`+`G`	In Finder. Like typing a path into the Explorer address bar
A new tab instead of a window	`⌘`+`T`	In Finder
Show the path bar	`⌥`+`⌘`+`P`	Puts a breadcrumb trail along the bottom

⌥+⌘+Space is the one most people settle on. It is genuinely global, and if you were going to search for a file anyway it saves a step.

Getting the one-key version back

If you would rather keep the habit than replace it, Switchover binds ⌃+⌥+E to exactly what ⊞+E does: it brings Finder forward and opens a new window, in one press, from whatever app you were in.

It sits alongside ⌃+⌥+D for Show Desktop, ⌃+⌥+L to lock, and ⌃+⌥+Tab for Mission Control — the ⌃⌥ combinations are used because macOS leaves them free, so nothing you already rely on gets taken. Each one can be reassigned, and each has its own switch.

Show Desktop, Lock and a new Finder window on the keys you remember (jumps to 2:23). Watch on YouTube

Get Switchover free on the Mac App Store

Copyright © 2026 Thanujan Sathiyamoorthy. All rights reserved. Switchover is an independent product and is not affiliated with Apple Inc. or Microsoft Corporation. Windows is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation; Mac, macOS and Finder are trademarks of Apple Inc.