The problem with manual profile switching
If you use different mouse button shortcuts for different apps, you already know the friction. You build a profile for Photoshop with undo, brush resize, and zoom on your side buttons. Then you switch to Excel and those same buttons need to do paste values, insert row, and navigate sheets. You open VS Code and you want terminal toggle, quick open, and git status as a typed string.
With manual switching, you have to remember which profile you're on, open the app or click a button to switch, and do it again every time you change windows. It works in theory, but in practice it adds a constant low-level interruption to your workflow. You end up pressing the wrong shortcut because you forgot to switch, or you just stop using profiles altogether because the overhead isn't worth it.
How automatic profile switching works in MouseKey
MouseKey monitors which application is in the foreground. When you click into a window that has a linked profile, MouseKey switches to that profile automatically. When you click away to an app that doesn't have a linked profile, MouseKey reverts to your default profile.
The switching is instant. There's no delay, no popup, no confirmation. You click into Photoshop and your Photoshop shortcuts are live. You Alt+Tab to your browser and your general shortcuts are back. The entire point is that you never think about it after the initial setup.
Setting it up
The setup takes a few minutes. You need to create the profiles you want, configure the button shortcuts in each one, and then link each profile to the app it belongs to.
Step 1: Create your profiles
Open MouseKey and create a profile for each application you want custom shortcuts for. Name them something obvious like "Photoshop," "Excel," or "VS Code." Keep your default profile as your general-purpose setup with shortcuts you use everywhere, like copy, paste, mute, and screenshot.
Step 2: Configure button shortcuts per profile
Switch to each profile and set up the click cadences and actions for that specific app. Each button can have up to 6 actions (1x through 5x clicks plus a 2-second hold), so even a basic mouse with 3 buttons gives you up to 18 shortcuts per profile. For detailed examples of app-specific setups, see the Photoshop, Excel, and VS Code shortcut guide.
Step 3: Link profiles to applications
In MouseKey's settings, link each profile to the application it should activate for. MouseKey uses a capture window that lets you select the target application directly. Once linked, that profile will activate whenever that application comes to the foreground.
Step 4: You're done
That's the entire setup. From here on, MouseKey handles the switching. Click into a linked app and that profile activates. Click away and your default profile comes back. It runs in the background from the system tray.
Example: a three-profile workflow
Here's what a typical setup looks like for someone who splits their day between creative work, spreadsheets, and browsing.
Default profile (browser, email, general use)
Middle button: 1x Copy, 2x Paste, 3x Undo, 4x Screenshot, 5x Mute
Back button: 1x Close Tab, 2x Reopen Tab, hold: Show Desktop
This profile is always active unless a linked app is in the foreground. It covers the shortcuts you use dozens of times a day across every application.
Photoshop profile (linked to Photoshop.exe)
Middle button: 1x Undo (Ctrl+Z), 2x Redo (Ctrl+Shift+Z), 3x Deselect (Ctrl+D), 4x Flatten (Ctrl+Shift+E)
Back button: 1x Brush Size Down ([), 2x Brush Size Up (]), 3x Zoom In (Ctrl+=), hold: Fit to Screen (Ctrl+0)
Editing shortcuts that only make sense inside Photoshop. They activate the moment you click into the Photoshop window.
Excel profile (linked to Excel.exe)
Middle button: 1x Paste Values (Ctrl+Shift+V), 2x Insert Row (Ctrl+Shift+=), 3x Delete Row (Ctrl+-), 4x AutoSum (Alt+=)
Back button: 1x Next Sheet (Ctrl+Page Down), 2x Previous Sheet (Ctrl+Page Up), 3x Find (Ctrl+F), hold: Save (Ctrl+S)
Spreadsheet-specific actions that would be useless in any other app. They're only active when Excel is in front.
With this setup, the same two physical buttons give you completely different functionality depending on which application you're working in, and you never switch anything manually.
What happens when you switch windows
The switching follows a simple rule. If the foreground app has a linked profile, that profile is active. If it doesn't, the default profile is active. There's no third state or fallback logic to think about.
In practice, this means you can Alt+Tab freely between apps and your mouse buttons always do what you expect. Click into Photoshop and your undo/redo cadences are ready. Alt+Tab to Chrome to check a reference image and your copy/paste shortcuts are back. Click back into Photoshop and the editing shortcuts return. It's seamless.
If you open an app that doesn't have its own profile, like Notepad or File Explorer, your default profile stays active. You only need to create dedicated profiles for apps where you actually want different shortcuts.
How this compares to other tools
Logitech G Hub has per-app profiles, but they only work with Logitech hardware, and each button gets a single action with no click cadences. Razer Synapse offers app-linked profiles as well, but again, Razer hardware only. X-Mouse Button Control supports per-app configurations through its layer system, but the setup process involves more manual steps and the interface can be overwhelming for users who just want to link a profile to an app.
MouseKey's auto switching works with any mouse regardless of brand. Combined with click cadences giving you 6 actions per button, you end up with significantly more shortcuts per profile than any of those alternatives offer.
Using it for gaming? Auto profile switching works with games too. Link a profile to your game's executable and your gaming shortcuts activate when the game is in the foreground. See the gaming shortcut guide for setup ideas, or the side button fix guide if your game doesn't recognize mouse buttons 4 and 5.
Tips for getting the most out of it
Start with your default profile. Put the shortcuts you use across every application here: copy, paste, undo, mute, screenshot, close tab. These are the ones that should always be available when no app-specific profile is active.
Only create dedicated profiles for apps where you actually need different shortcuts. If your default shortcuts work fine in a given app, there's no reason to create a separate profile for it. Most people end up with 2 to 4 profiles total.
Keep the same cadence patterns across profiles where possible. If 1x on the middle button is always your most-used action in every app, your muscle memory transfers between profiles even though the actual shortcut changes. Your hand learns "single click middle button for the primary action" and it works everywhere.
Use the hold slot for infrequent but important actions. The 2-second hold is perfect for things you do a few times a day but not constantly, like save, flatten layers, or show desktop. Keep the quick cadences (1x, 2x, 3x) for the high-frequency shortcuts.
Getting started
Auto profile switching is available in MouseKey 2.1 and later. Install from the Microsoft Store, create your first two profiles, link them to apps, and try it for a day. Once you stop thinking about which profile you're on, you'll know it's working.
For more on what you can do with click cadences in each profile, see the full keyboard shortcut replacement experiment or the macro recorder deep dive.
Get MouseKey
Per-app profiles. 6 actions per button. Automatic switching. Works with any mouse.
