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I have been always using Ctrl+F5 on Chrome when I needed to ignore cache and load a new content. Today, I found out that my colleague is using Shift+F5 for the same and apparently, with the same result. My best guess was that the first one just bypasses the cache and the second one is clearing them completely. But I'm not sure, because I didn't find any article comparing these two specifically (apart from Ctrl+F5 and F5, or Shift+F5 and Ctrl+R...).

Only thing I found is this forum post, where it says these combinations don't reload the page anymore. So, how come I use it with the most recent version of Chrome and apparently, everything works as expected?

So I went to the official list of Chrome shortcuts, where there is not a single trace of Ctrl+F5 that I still use to this day. And I'm updating css files without a version tag couple times a day, so I can tell it works.

Can you help us sort this thing out?

René Beneš
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    Isn't it depending on the implementation of the browser? You are talking about Chrome and Aayush is talking about Firefox. I don't think there is a standard on how shortcut keys should behave. Maybe you can specify your title (or with tags) more clearly which browser you want to discuss? – ffonz Dec 12 '19 at 11:43
  • That's a good point, I actually had google chrome in tags but I deleted it, not sure why I did. Thank you – René Beneš Dec 12 '19 at 11:44

2 Answers2

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There is absolutely no difference.

Ctrl+Shift+R / Shift+F5 / Ctrl+F5 Does exactly the same in Chrome - reload the page ignoring cache (images, scripts, css files)

I am speculating Shift+F5 is Chrome way to reload, while Ctrl+Shift+R/Ctrl+F5 is added for compatibility with other browsers.

For putting an example in Firefox Shift+F5 open Performance tab in developer tools, so for those who use both browsers is more comfortable to use Ctrl+F5 combination.

Oleksandr Dovbysh
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  • This was exactly the answer I was looking for, especially the second paragraph. So I will accept this one with a bounty. So, thank you and welcome to Stackoverflow!:) – René Beneš Dec 12 '19 at 12:14
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Your observation is correct!

Follow the following steps to verify your observation:

  1. Open menu>More tools> Developer tools or Ctrl + Shift + I.
  2. Navigate to Network Tab, and observe requests and data transfer figures on the bottom of the page.
  3. Open the webpage of your choice, I used apple.com (as it shows you the considerable difference in the figures)
  4. Now try F5/Ctrl + R, Ctrl + F5/Ctrl + Shift + R/Shift + F5.

Note: Ctrl + F5 is a shortcut specified in the official document of Firefox. Firebox Shortcut Page

Aayush Sethi
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  • I can see that request in developer console aren't disk cached when I use either Ctrl + F5 or Shift + F5. My question was, if they complete the same operation or if there is a difference. And how come Ctrl + F5 works even when not listed on official shortcut list. I don't use Firefox. So sorry, this doesn't answer my question, just assures me in what I found myself. – René Beneš Dec 06 '19 at 08:50
  • My Intention behind the above solution is, if the number of packages downloaded is the same, then they must be doing the same operation. As an example, if there is a total of n KB of data to be downloaded, and the same amount is downloaded for the first time as well as consecutive when with a hard refresh is done, then they must be the same. Another link I found as a support for the answer is: https://www.saicharanreddy.com/whats-the-difference-between-f5-ctrlr-ctrlshiftr-ctrlf5-and-shiftf5-in-google-chrome-browser/ – Aayush Sethi Dec 06 '19 at 13:01
  • It's not completely true that they must be doing the same operation. As I stated in my question, one of them could have been bypassing cached content or one could be deleting them completely. That was why I was asking. Do you know how to adress that Ctrl + F5 doesn't appear anywhere in official chrome shortcut list? – René Beneš Dec 12 '19 at 11:37