It seems like this is a widespread issue. I tried redefining shortcuts such as creating new windows, but although the shortcut appears in the menu bar it doesn't actually work—Safari uses the default extension. This happens for other Safari menu bar items as well.
Sadly this doesn't seem to have been fixed even on Safari 14 (shipped with macOS Big Sur).
In order to overcome this strange limitation/bug, I use BetterTouchTool to set up custom keyboard shortcuts, and it works pretty well.
Answer from Oion Akif on Stack ExchangeChanging Safari shortcut (mimic "Alt + D" shortcut in Windows to Mac using "Command + D" )
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Hi all.
I just got my first ever MacBook Air M1 coming from Windows my entire life. Amazing so far, but I do miss some features and shortcuts from Windows. One of them is using a shortcut to go to the address bar.
Think Alt + D in windows.
For Mac, this is achievable by pressing Command + L. For me, this is a stretch because I need to use both hands and with Windows, I got used to just using my left hand.
To change this:
Go to System Preferences >> Keyboard >> Shortcuts
There, you can change various shortcut keys. For this, we will focus on "App Shortcuts."
Go to App Shortcuts >> press the "+" icon >> select "Safari" on the dropdown application menu
For the menu title, I have read that it has to be exact.
Set the menu title to "Open Location..." (make sure to include the three dots)
Hit command + D in the keyboard shortcut box and click "add."
Now, you're done remapping but this time, the add bookmark shortcut will be simultaneously pressed because command + D is a default shortcut for adding to bookmarks in Safari.
Change this by doing the exact same steps but this time:
Put "Add Bookmark..." as the menu title (include the three dots)
and hit Command + B (or whatever shortcut you want to assign it to).
And, if all done correctly, it should work!
This post might be disorganized for some people but I'll be happy to answer any confusion.
It seems like this is a widespread issue. I tried redefining shortcuts such as creating new windows, but although the shortcut appears in the menu bar it doesn't actually work—Safari uses the default extension. This happens for other Safari menu bar items as well.
Sadly this doesn't seem to have been fixed even on Safari 14 (shipped with macOS Big Sur).
In order to overcome this strange limitation/bug, I use BetterTouchTool to set up custom keyboard shortcuts, and it works pretty well.
I can / must confirm your experience. I tried your custom shortcuts in Safari– they ONLY work in tabs without "history".
I tried to google this phenomenon but didn't find much help, either.
Btw, did you notice that these two "stubborn" shortcuts work also with finder windows? So they might be valid system wide and kind of default.
At last I found a reliable source, stating:
- Human Interface Guidelines
- Keyboard
- Reserved and Expected Keyboard Shortcuts
The following keyboard shortcuts are either reserved by the system or well-known by users.
Primary Key Keyboard Shortcut Action Left arrow Command-Left arrow Change the keyboard layout to current layout of system script.
So CMDLeft arrow is definitely a "reserved shortcut", though with an unexpected "mission"...
(Me: MacOS 13.6, Safari 11.1, PC keyboard)