KeyCode

Description

The code to use for identifying input. These codes map directly to a physical key on the keyboard or language-dependent keys.

If Use Physical Keys is enabled in Input Manager settings, these codes map directly to a physical key on the keyboard. If Use Physical Keys is disabled these map to language dependent mapping, different for every platform and cannot be guaranteed to work. Use Physical Keys is enabled by default from 2022.1.

You can use key codes to detect key down and key up events, using Input.GetKeyDown and Input.GetKeyUp at runtime for gameplay. For joystick and gamepad button presses, consider using Input.GetButtonDown and Input.GetButtonUp instead of the KeyCode. You can use these methods to check an input state with a descriptive action string, such as "fire" or "jump", instead of the hardware button number.

Refer to Input to learn more about accessing keyboard, mouse, and joystick input. Consider using the new Input System package instead of KeyCode-based input.

using UnityEngine;

public class PlayerInput : MonoBehaviour
{
    void Update()
    {
        if (Input.GetKeyDown(KeyCode.Space))
        {
            Debug.Log("Jump!");
        }

        float horizontal = 0f;
        if (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.A)) horizontal -= 1f;
        if (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.D)) horizontal += 1f;

        transform.Translate(new Vector3(horizontal * Time.deltaTime, 0, 0));
    }
}

Keyboard events can also be captured within OnGUI in the Editor for direct key handling.

using UnityEngine;
using UnityEditor;

public class Counter : MonoBehaviour
{
    public int counter;
}

[CustomEditor(typeof(Counter))]
public class CounterEditor : UnityEditor.Editor
{
    public override void OnInspectorGUI()
    {
        DrawDefaultInspector();

        Counter myTarget = (Counter)target;

        Event e = Event.current;
        if (e.type == EventType.KeyDown)
        {
            if (e.keyCode == KeyCode.UpArrow)
            {
                myTarget.counter++;
                GUI.changed = true;
            }
            else if (e.keyCode == KeyCode.DownArrow)
            {
                myTarget.counter--;
                GUI.changed = true;
            }
        }

        if (GUI.changed)
        {
            EditorUtility.SetDirty(target);
        }
    }
}

While KeyCode is used to define keys in shortcuts, the ShortcutManager provides a higher-level API for Editor shortcuts.

using UnityEngine;
using UnityEditor;
using UnityEditor.ShortcutManagement;

public static class ShortcutDefinitions
{
    [Shortcut("Examples/Log Message", KeyCode.L, ShortcutModifiers.Alt)]
    public static void LogMessage()
    {
        Debug.Log("Shortcut activated!");
    }

    [MenuItem("Tools/Minimal Shortcut Example")]
    private static void ShowShortcutInfo()
    {
        Debug.Log("Press Alt+L to activate the shortcut.");
    }
}

Additional resources: Input, ShortcutManager.

Properties