# Panes

Panes let you place documents beside or above each other. Each pane has its own tabs.

## Split the active pane

| Shortcut | New pane position |
| --- | --- |
| Alt+Shift+J | Left |
| Alt+Shift+L | Right |
| Alt+Shift+I | Above |
| Alt+Shift+K | Below |

When the active tab contains a document, the new pane starts with the same document. You can then open another file in either pane.

## Move between panes

| Shortcut | Move to |
| --- | --- |
| Alt+J | Pane on the left |
| Alt+L | Pane on the right |
| Alt+I | Pane above |
| Alt+K | Pane below |

You can also press **Alt+1** through **Alt+9** to focus a pane by its position.

## Resize panes

Drag the divider between two panes to resize them.

The command palette also offers `workspace:grow` and `workspace:shrink`. These resize the active pane in larger steps.

## Use tabs inside a pane

The usual tab shortcuts work inside the active pane:

| Shortcut | Action |
| --- | --- |
| Ctrl+Tab | Next tab |
| Ctrl+Shift+Tab | Previous tab |
| Ctrl+Page Up | Move the active tab left |
| Ctrl+Page Down | Move the active tab right |
| Ctrl+W | Close the active tab |

Closing the last tab also removes an unneeded pane.

See [Tabs and Documents](tabs_and_documents.md) for temporary Browser previews, permanent tabs, and safe closing.
