Stuck with an interface element selected in Roblox? You can clear the selection and turn off the keyboard shortcut from inside an experience on Windows or Mac. Controller selection and desktop app navigation have their own exit controls, covered below.
Turn off the UI navigation shortcut
Join a Roblox experience.
If an interface element is already selected, press Backslash (\) once to exit selection before disabling the shortcut. If that key does nothing, use the keyboard checks in the next two sections.
Press Esc to open the Roblox menu. Open Settings and scroll to UI Navigation Toggle. Set it to Off.
You can also open the menu by clicking the Roblox menu icon. The setting applies to the keyboard navigation shortcut inside experiences on Windows and macOS.
That switches off the keyboard toggle. It does not hide the interface or block controller navigation or selection triggered by an experience’s scripts.
Find the selection key for your keyboard
Keyboard layouts differ, so the selection shortcut does not always match the physical Backslash key label.
Press Esc to open the Roblox menu.
Open Help.
Find UI Selection Toggle under Misc and check the assigned key.
Return to the experience.
With UI Navigation Toggle enabled, press the indicated key once to exit active selection. This clears the current selection while leaving the shortcut available for future use.
Restore the shortcut to clear stuck selection
Use this method when an interface element remains selected but UI Navigation Toggle is already Off. The shortcut needs to be enabled before you can use it to clear selection.
Press Esc to open the menu.
Open Settings.
Set UI Navigation Toggle to On.
Resume the experience.
Press the key listed under Help > Misc > UI Selection Toggle to clear the selection.
Return to Settings.
Set UI Navigation Toggle to Off again. This sequence restores the shortcut so you can exit selection before disabling it again. It does not guarantee recovery from unrelated navigation bugs.
Exit selection with your controller
On an Xbox-style controller, press Select/View again while an interface element is selected. Look for the overlapping-squares button, labeled Game Menu Toggle in Roblox’s controller diagram.
This also applies to Xbox-style controllers connected to desktop clients when the experience uses default gamepad selection. Turning off the keyboard shortcut does not disable that controller toggle.
On PlayStation, press the touchpad button assigned to Game Menu Toggle to toggle game-menu selection.
To check the PlayStation button mapping, press Options.
Press R1 to open Help.
Use the controls assigned by your experience when they differ from these defaults, and remember that these buttons toggle selection without permanently disabling navigation.
Leave navigation mode in the desktop app
Mouse or touch input exits keyboard and gamepad navigation in the Roblox desktop app outside an experience.
Click an interface control with your mouse, or tap one on your touchscreen.
Continue navigating with your mouse or touchscreen. Directional keyboard or gamepad input activates navigation mode again.
This behavior applies to the desktop app interface on Windows and macOS. Its input mode is separate from the UI selection you control while playing an experience.
Control navigation in your own experience
If you have permission to edit an experience, you can control automatic selection through a client LocalScript. Set game:GetService("GuiService").AutoSelectGuiEnabled = false to prevent automatic selection through Backslash or gamepad Select. Experience scripts can still initiate selection by assigning SelectedObject.
To disable default controller GUI navigation in your experience, set game:GetService("GuiService").GuiNavigationEnabled = false in client code. This controls navigation capability separately from the currently selected interface element.
To clear the current selection, set game:GetService("GuiService").SelectedObject = nil. Clearing that focus alone leaves subsequent selection activation possible. These creator controls apply to an experience you can edit; ordinary players cannot impose them on someone else’s experience.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use a script to disable navigation in someone else’s experience?
No. The creator controls apply to experiences you have permission to edit. In your own experience, a client LocalScript can set GuiService.AutoSelectGuiEnabled to false to prevent automatic selection through Backslash or gamepad Select. Scripts can still select an element by assigning SelectedObject.
Should I press F9 twice to fix UI navigation?
The F9-twice workaround came from reports of a 2025 navigation bug. Roblox staff later reported disabling the problematic flag. It is historical troubleshooting, not a current method for turning navigation off.