How to enable and use GitHub Feature Previews to try experimental tools like slash commands, command palette, and colorblind themes for accessibility and productivity
GitHub Feature Previews let you opt in to experimental or early-stage functionality—such as public previews—so you can try upcoming features before they roll out to everyone. This is useful for testing new workflows (e.g., slash commands, the Command Palette) and accessibility options (e.g., colorblind themes) in your account.To enable Feature Previews:
Open your profile menu (click your user photo).
Select Feature preview.
Toggle the previews you want to try and refresh the page to apply changes.
Common previews you may see enabled by default include slash commands and colorblind themes. Slash commands shorten repetitive Markdown tasks—like inserting tables—while colorblind themes provide accessible light and dark variants tailored for different types of color vision.
Another productivity-focused preview is the Command Palette. When enabled, it gives you a fast, keyboard-driven way to jump between repositories, projects, issues, and pull requests and provides a unified search for issues and PRs.How to enable and use the Command Palette:
Toggle the Command Palette option in Feature Previews.
Refresh the page after enabling the toggle.
Press Ctrl+K on Windows/Linux or Cmd+K on macOS to open the palette.
Start typing the repository, issue, or action you want to jump to and select it from the popup.
If the Command Palette shortcut doesn’t open GitHub’s palette right away, your browser may be intercepting the keys. Always refresh after toggling a preview so the page registers the new behavior.
Remember to refresh the page after enabling a Feature Preview. Many keyboard shortcuts are captured by the browser until the page reloads with the feature active.
Quick reference: common Feature Previews
Feature
What it does
How to use
Slash commands
Insert common Markdown structures quickly (e.g., tables)
Type / in an editor and choose a command
Colorblind themes
Provides accessible light/dark themes for various color vision types
Toggle in Feature preview > choose theme, then refresh
Command Palette
Keyboard-driven navigation and search across repos, issues, PRs
Enable in Feature preview → refresh → Ctrl+K / Cmd+K
Resources and further reading:
GitHub Docs — official documentation and guides for account settings and feature previews.
