How do I save and quit Vim quickly from normal mode without typing a colon command?

Explanation

ZZ is a normal mode shorthand that saves and quits only if the buffer has been modified. Unlike :wq, which always writes to disk (updating the file's modification timestamp even if nothing changed), ZZ behaves like :x — it skips the write entirely when the buffer is clean. The companion command ZQ quits unconditionally without saving, equivalent to :q!.

How it works

• ZZ — write buffer only if modified, then close the window. Equivalent to :x
• ZQ — quit without saving, no questions asked. Equivalent to :q!

Both commands are two-character normal mode sequences starting with Z. They work on the current window and obey the same rules as their : equivalents.

Example

# Buffer has no unsaved changes:
# :wq  → writes the file anyway (updates mtime)
# ZZ   → exits without touching the file

# Buffer has unsaved changes:
# ZZ   → saves, then exits
# ZQ   → exits immediately, discarding changes

Tips

• Prefer ZZ over :wq in scripts or macros when you want to avoid spurious timestamp updates on unmodified files
• ZQ is useful when you opened a file by mistake and want to get out fast without the :q! dance
• Both commands close only the current window; if other windows are open, Vim stays running