Bind

bind is a console command used to bind a key to one or several other commands. Typically, when keys are bound, the corresponding bind command is stored in config.cfg, which is ran when the engine starts, leading to binds staying active between sessions, unless config.cfg is set to read-only.

Syntax

Basic Syntax

The basic syntax for the command is as follows:

bind <key> [command]

For example, after running bind 1 slot1, pressing 1 would execute the command slot1. Additionally, binding a key to a semicolon-separated list of commands in quotation marks would cause all commands to be executed, because everything within quotation marks is interpreted as a single argument. After running bind mouse1 "slot1; unbind mouse1", then pressing mouse1, slot1 would be run, followed by unbind mouse1.

+/- Commands

If the first character in the command/string that the key is bound to is }}+}}, then after releasing the key, the same string of commands is executed, except the first character is replaced with }}-}}. For example, running bind w +forward will cause +forward to be run when w is pressed, then -forward to be run when w is unpressed. Consequently, there are some cases where the result of pressing a key are different from what is intuitive. Running bind w "+forward; +attack" will cause +forward;+attack to be run when w is pressed, but causes -forward;+attack to be run when w is unpressed, causing you to continue attacking. The alias command can be used in conjunction with bind to yield different results. To make the W key instead run +forward; +attack when pressed, and run -forward; -attack when unpressed, the following commands can be used:

alias +w_pressed "+forward; +attack"

alias -w_pressed "-forward; -attack"

bind w +w_pressed

Additionally, if the key is bound to a string that starts with a + and matches a console command exactly, the corresponding minus command will not be executed if the plus command was executed more recently than the minus command. For example, after running +forward, if w is bound to +forward, unpressing w will not execute the command -forward. However, if w was instead bound to the string "+forward;slot1", unpressing w would result in -forward;slot1 being executed, because the string "-forward;slot1" is not a console command. It would then be parsed to execute -forward then slot1.

Special Keys

System Commands, Modifier Keys, Other

Bind name	Key
f1-12	F1 to F12 (Top Row)
escape	"ESC" (Top Left of keyboard)
tab	Tabulator (Above Capslock)
capslock	Capslock
shift	Shift (Below Capslock)
ctrl	Control (Below Capslock)
alt	Alt (Left of Spacebar)
space	Spacebar
backspace	Backspace (Above Enter)
enter	Enter
semicolon	Semicolon (This symbol: ";")
lwin	Windows Key (Left of Spacebar)
rwin	Windows Key (Right of Spacebar)
apps	Menu
numlock	Numlock
scrolllock	Scrolllock

Navigation Keys

Bind name	Key
uparrow	Up Arrow
downarrow	Down Arrow
leftarrow	Left Arrow
rightarrow	Right Arrow
ins	Insert (Above arrows)
del	Delete (Above arrows)
pgdn	Page Down (Above arrows)
pgup	Page Up (Above arrows)
home	Home (Above arrows)
end	End (Above arrows)
pause	Pause / Break (Above arrows)

Number Pad

Bind name	Key
kp_end	Keypad 1
kp_downarrow	Keypad 2
kp_pgdn	Keypad 3
kp_leftarrow	Keypad 4
kp_5	Keypad 5
kp_rightarrow	Keypad 6
kp_home	Keypad 7
kp_uparrow	Keypad 8
kp_pgup	Keypad 9
kp_enter	Keypad Enter
kp_ins	Keypad 0
kp_del	Keypad .
kp_slash	Keypad /
kp_multiply	Keypad *
kp_minus	Keypad -
kp_plus	Keypad +

Mouse Buttons

Bind name	Key
mwheeldown	Mouse - Scroll Down
mwheelup	Mouse - Scroll Up
mouse1	Mouse - Left click
mouse2	Mouse - Right click
mouse3	Mouse - Wheel click
mouse4	Mouse - Page Back
mouse5	Mouse - Page Forward

Gamepad Buttons (//)

Bind name	Key
joy1-32	Joystick & gamepad buttons.
aux1-32	Legacy. Maps directly to joy1-32.
pov_up	D-Pad Up
pov_right	D-Pad Right
pov_down	D-Pad Down
pov_down	D-Pad Left

Related console commands

binds_per_command

Set the maximum number of binds per command when on console. Does not apply to desktop.

Syntax:

binds_per_command MAX

BindToggle

A convenient command for toggling a Cvar on or off by pressing a key. Functionally identical to bind KEY "incrementvar CVAR 0 1 1".

Syntax:

BindToggle KEY CVAR

If you wanted your p key to turn sv_cheats on or off, you would type BindToggle p sv_cheats.

bind_mac

Functions identically to bind except it only affects macOS users.

unbind

The opposite of bind. Sets a key to do nothing.

Syntax:

unbind KEY

To make your left click do nothing, you would type unbind MOUSE1.

unbind_mac

Functions identically to unbind except it only affects macOS users.

unbindall

The infamous command that unbinds all the keys.

Tip:If you do this command (or you're a poor sap that got tricked), you can reset to default bindings in the Options menu. Keyboard, Use Defaults.

key_listboundkeys

Lists all keys that are bound to something, and what they are bound to.

Example input and output from Half-Life 2:

] key_listboundkeys 
"6" = "slot6"
"1" = "slot1"
"a" = "+moveleft"
"2" = "slot2"
"c" = "impulse 50"
"3" = "slot3"
"d" = "+moveright"
"4" = "slot4"
"e" = "+use"
"5" = "slot5"
"f" = "impulse 100"
"g" = "phys_swap"
"q" = "lastinv"
"w" = "+forward"
"r" = "+reload"
"z" = "+zoom"
"s" = "+back"
"`" = "toggleconsole"
"SPACE" = "+jump"
"NUMLOCK" = "pause"
"ESCAPE" = "cancelselect"
"SHIFT" = "+speed"
"CTRL" = "+duck"
"ALT" = "+walk"
"F5" = "jpeg"
"F6" = "save quick"
"F9" = "load quick"
"MOUSE1" = "+attack"
"MWHEELDOWN" = "invnext"
"MOUSE2" = "+attack2"
"MWHEELUP" = "invprev"

key_findbinding

Searches through the list of bound keys and returns the ones that have a given substring in the command field.

Syntax:

key_findbinding STRING

Example input and output from Half-Life 2:

] key_findbinding slot
"1" = "slot1"
"2" = "slot2"
"3" = "slot3"
"4" = "slot4"
"5" = "slot5"
"6" = "slot6"

key_updatelayout

Updates game keyboard layout to current windows keyboard setting. Only works on windows.

This is only useful if your virtual keyboard layout changes in Windows (i.e changing from QWERTY to AZERTY) while the game is running.

See Also

• Console Command List