Keyboard test

Press any key and it lights on the board below and stays marked, so you can see which keys work. It shows the key name and code, counts how many keys you hold at once, and plays a real mechanical switch recording as you go. Free, no download, nothing saved.

How to use the keyboard tester

Click anywhere on the page or just start pressing keys. Each key you press lights up and keeps a green outline, so the keys you have not touched yet stand out. Work across the board and any key that never gets an outline is one to look at.

The line under the board shows the last key you pressed: the character it types, its code, and the older numeric key code some software still uses. Reset clears the board so you can start over.

Checking for a dead or sticky key

A dead key is one that never lights, however firmly you press it. A key that lights but types nothing in other apps points to software, such as a remap or a keyboard layout setting. A sticky or chattering key shows up as extra presses: if one tap moves the press counter by two, that switch is bouncing.

If a key only works when pressed hard, try the same key a few times. Crumbs and dust under a keycap are the usual cause, and it is worth cleaning around the key before assuming the switch has failed.

Checking rollover: how many keys at once

Hold several keys together and watch the number beside "most held at once". That is how many keys your keyboard and your system registered at the same moment. Some keyboards can only report a limited number at once, which matters for fast typing and for gaming, where several keys are often held together.

Treat the result as the lowest of what the keyboard, the connection and the browser each allow. If a number looks too low, test the keyboard again on another computer before blaming the switches.

Keys a browser cannot see

A web page only hears keys the system hands to it. Fn is handled by the keyboard itself on most laptops, and the media and brightness keys on a Mac's top row usually act on the system before a page can see them, so those may never light here. Shortcuts that belong to the system or the browser, like ⌘Q, are also kept out of the page.

Caps Lock can behave differently from other keys, because some systems report it only when it is switched on or off rather than on every press.

Hear it on a different switch

The board plays the recordings Kiiwi ships. Pick another switch under the keyboard and the board changes colour and sound together. If one stands out, each switch has its own page: browse all switch sounds. To measure your speed rather than test your keys, try the 1 minute typing test.

Related

• 3 minute typing test
• 1 minute typing test
• 30 second typing test
• Best switches for typing and gaming
• Quiet vs loud mechanical switches

Questions

Does this keyboard tester work on a Mac?

Yes, in any current browser. Most keys light up, including Command and Option. A few system keys, like Fn and the top row media keys, are handled before the page sees them.

Is anything I type saved or sent?

No. The page only reacts to key presses in your browser and nothing about them is stored or sent anywhere.

What does "most held at once" mean?

It is the largest number of keys you held down at the same moment, which shows how many simultaneous keys your keyboard and system registered.

Why does a key stay outlined after I let go?

That outline is a marker that the key has been pressed at least once. Use Reset to clear it.

Why does it make sound?

Every key plays a recording of a real mechanical switch, as a demo of what Kiiwi does on a Mac. Turn your volume down if you would rather test in silence.