The accurate ergonomic keyboards for 2024

It’s tricky to give a blanket recommendation for ergonomics, because the term most precisely interprets to “what works finest on your physique” — and all our bodies are somewhat about a. But in the event you’ve landed right here, probabilities are you’re shopping for a keyboard that’s more easy on your shoulders, neck and wrists. Frail keyboards preserve your fingers shut together and force you to splay your fingers outward. After some time, that might possibly perhaps feel straining. By animated the orientation of the keys, ergonomic keyboards can preserve your better physique in a extra neutral predicament, combating you from twisting or over-extending your fingers and fingers. We’ve broken down the quite loads of aspects that influence some boards extra physique-friendly than others and examined a handful to advance abet up with the categorical ergonomic keyboards to swimsuit somewhat about a needs and preferences.

Mercurial Overview

Logitech Ergo K860 Wireless Destroy up

Most attention-grabbing wi-fi ergonomic keyboard
Perixx Periboard-512

Most attention-grabbing funds ergonomic keyboard
ZSA Voyager

Most attention-grabbing ergonomic keyboard to interrupt and rebuild your brain

$365 at ZSA
Kinesis Gaming Freestyle Edge

Honorable mention for gaming

What to survey in an ergonomic keyboard

Alice vs split

Most ergonomic keyboard layouts tumble into two courses: Alice and split. The passe is a single board with the two halves of the keys circled about 30 levels apart at the underside. The separation kinds an A-formed order between the keys — which has nothing to attain with why it’s called an Alice structure, it’s only a pleased accident. This subtle tweak pushes your elbows away from your ribs while retaining a straight line from your forearm to your middle knuckle. Using one, I somewhat straight away felt extra initiate along the front facet of my physique. This structure extra closely resembles a former keyboard, so it must be more easy for most other folks to safe frail to than an completely split option.

Talking of, split boards ruin the keys into two separate sides you might even predicament in my realizing. You are going to have the option to set them shoulder distance apart, lift them nearer together or angle them as noteworthy as feels ecstatic. You are going to have the option to also build your mouse between the halves, which might possibly perhaps even feel adore a much less complicated budge on your cursor hand. Personally, I adore having the ability to set my contemporary snack between the two sides.

Tenkeyless

Yow will stumble on ergonomic keyboards with and with out number pads. No longer having these number keys on the finest facet lets you preserve your mouse nearer in, minimizing total attain. But in the event you work with numbers a lot, you’ll seemingly desire that pad incorporated. Some programmable boards allow for the employ of layers, which like a flash repurpose keys and can present you a ten-key option through artful remapping of letter keys.

Tenting and negative tilt

Tenting raises the middle of the keyboard up, so your fingers switch nearer to a “handshake” predicament. Alice keyboards customarily angle up in direction of the middle and continuously to a mounted stage, since the two sides are connected. Destroy up boards customarily indicate you how to regulate the stage of tenting, going from flat to sophisticated to crude build shut.

It is seemingly you’ll perhaps perhaps even hold encountered keyboards with an non-compulsory build shut at the abet of the board, raising the halt keys bigger than the order bar. Every set of residing of fingers is extremely about a, however for most other folks, pulling the backs of the fingers in direction of the forearms increases strain. Detrimental tilt has the different lift out by sloping in the somewhat about a route, reducing the halt number keys while raising the threshold with the spacebar. Many Alice and some split keyboards offer an non-compulsory negative tilt. I chanced on it used to be extra ecstatic to permit that characteristic when I’m standing, and I most popular to hold the keys flat when sat at my desk.

Staggered vs columnar

This resolution appears to be like to be one amongst the extra hotly-contested among ergo followers. A used keyboard has staggered keys, with every row a runt bit offset to the rows above and under it — so the A key is about halfway between the Q and W above it. Here’s a holdover from classic mechanical typewriters, in which every press activated a hammer that smashed ink onto paper in the shape of a letter. To envision the hammers as shut together as that that you might even mediate of, while quiet allowing for finger pads, the keys had been staggered.

Columnar or ortholinear keyboards stack the keys in enthralling columns, customarily with rows which will seemingly be not linear. Proponents say this makes the keys more easy to attain. Whether or not that’s appropriate shall be as a lot as your fingers to mediate, however I’m able to advise pointless to advise that in the event you learned to form on a staggered keyboard, switching to a columnar structure is tricky. This will seize days, possibly weeks sooner than you instinctively hit the C key. The N, M and B keys don’t fare noteworthy better.

Programmable keys

With about a exceptions, most ergonomic keyboards will work with PCs or Macs as a standard typing enter, however the employ of feature and sizzling keys might possibly perhaps even require some remapping. It must also moreover be as straightforward as an onboard swap to toggle between Mac and PC layouts, or as alive to as downloading application to alternate up the keys. Some boards even embrace (or indicate you how to aquire) extra keycaps to alternate, advise, the Mac’s Instruct and Probability keys to PC’s Launch and Alt buttons.

For some boards, remapping or programming keys is a a must-hold characteristic. Gaming peripherals hold extra keys that that you might even set of residing to attain a series of keystrokes with the speed of a single button. Keyboards that work with layers, in which a single button can carry out various functions, customarily indicate you how to alternate what these are. Some ergonomic keyboards hold non-common layouts, adore thumb clusters with a pair of keys come the order bar that you use along with your thumb. You’ll also have the option to program these.

A vary of concerns

Ergonomic keyboards advance in mechanical, membrane, and scissor swap variations. Which works finest for you is, once more, as a lot as your preference. I won’t safe too deep into the particulars right here, however the looking out it’s that membrane and scissor switches are much less customizable than mechanical and customarily much less expensive. Typing on them tends to be quieter and softer. Mechanical switches are extra customizable, offer a extra responsive typing ride and are usually pricier.

You’ll even hold the option of wired or wi-fi ergonomic boards. All somewhat about a things being equal, wired gadgets are much less expensive. Competitive avid gamers who rely on split-2nd responses might possibly perhaps even opt the zero-crawl of wired keyboards. Wired gadgets also by no means speed out of battery existence and hold fewer connectivity problems. But wi-fi keyboards preserve your desk much less cluttered.

Some ergonomic keyboards advance with everlasting or removable wrist or palm rests, which is ready to be cushioned or exhausting. Here is any other order the set opinions diverge: proponents say they permit you build a neutral hand predicament, while detractors advise they build strain on the tendons on your wrist. Ideally, your fingers must be resting, not your wrists, and also you might even gain you want having that improve or you might even gain the strain unhappy.

A closeup shot of an ergonomic keyboard that reveals the two sides splitting apart. — List by Amy Skorheim / Engadget

How we examined

All our guides initiate with in depth analysis to resolve out what’s available and what’s worth checking out. We preserve in mind producers with correct reputations that we’ve heard correct things about from colleagues and somewhat about a relied on publications. For this data, I looked for keyboards with ergonomic aspects adore tenting, split keys, palm improve etc. I also zeroed in on boards that didn’t require a deep quantity of familiarity with the giant and exhaustive world of custom keyboards.

After I settled on ten boards, I got them and frail each one for anywhere from about a days to a pair weeks. I tried out the remapping and macros application and thought to be because the consolation, create, designate and durability of every model sooner than arriving at picks I mediate will work finest for doubtlessly the most other folks available.

List by Amy Skorheim / Engadget

Ergonomic aspects: Alice split, middle tenting, non-compulsory negative tilt, wrist rest | Host connection: Bluetooth or USB receiver | Switch form: Scissor | Hotkey compatibility: Mac and Home windows | Ten key: Certain | RGB lighting: No | Programing interface: Logi Alternate ideas+ (app)

The Ergo K860 from Logitech closely resembles a standard keyboard, so there’s not noteworthy of a finding out curve. But subtle changes adore the Alice structure, tented middle and non-compulsory negative tilt influence typing noticeably extra ergonomic. Logitech makes some of our favourite PC accessories, and the reasons why are all evident with this keyboard: it connects like a flash and reliably by the employ of Bluetooth, the build is solid and feels excessive-quality and it be inexpensive at $130 (and is generally on sale for around $100).

It’s neatly matched with extra contemporary iterations of Home windows, MacOS, iPadOS, ChromeOS and Linux, although you’ll need application to improve non-total key functions for the latter two working programs. There are three switching buttons that swap between previously connected gadgets, and the board quickly swapped between a MacBook and a PC computer in my assessments. Constructed-in feature keys adore volume and brightness worked neatly and the Probability/Launch and Instruct/Alt combo keys worked precisely depending on which pc used to be connected to.

The circled Alice-split create and raised middle made a distinction in the device I held my fingers as I typed, allowing me to preserve my elbows conveniently away from my ribs and my fingers circled inward in preference to forcing them flat. The palm rest is springy however company (albeit not removable) and the arrow keys and a numeric keypad on the finest facet build all that that you might even mediate of keys internal glimpse. Unfortunately, that adds size to that facet of the board, which forces your mouse farther out. The scissor swap keys can feel mushy in the event you’re coming from a mechanical board, however they’re responsive enough. Logitech presents application for programming the keys, however this model will seemingly enchantment most to those shopping for a lunge and play option.

For a mechanical Alice keyboard with each wi-fi and wired capabilities, I indicate the Periboard 835. The Mac and Home windows-neatly matched board has a solid build, low profile switches, RGB lighting, ecstatic tenting and some extra programmable keys.

Mavens

Rotated keys and palm wrest influence typing ecstatic
Wirelessly connects like a flash to a pair devides
Hotkeys work with MacOS and Home windows

Cons

Takes up a large footprint
Wrist wrest just will not be removable

$110 at B&H List

List by Amy Skorheim / Engadget

If you happen to (expertly) sawed a mechanical keyboard in two, it might possibly possibly perhaps perhaps perhaps undercover agent adore the Keychron Q11. You are going to have the option to even push the two halves abet together to influence it undercover agent adore a standard, 75 percent mechanical board (although while you undercover agent the expediency of a snack bowl between the halves, I don’t know why you’d attain that).

Keychron is broadly revered in the mechanical keyboard world due to the they influence quality keyboards that aren’t astronomically expensive. Like any Keychron gadgets, you might even aquire this one assembled or barebones, to that you would be able to even add your individual keycaps and switches. I examined an completely assembled model with Gateron G Educated Crimson linear mechanical switches, which present smoother motion and a quieter clack than tactile or clicky switches. The keycaps are fabricated from PBT, an even bigger-quality polymer than the ABS plastic keys chanced on in much less expensive keyboards. The machined aluminum physique feels massive and there’s no streak. All of that blended creates a luxe and durable feel and a stunning, buttery clack as you form.

The assembled model comes with keycaps (and a keycap puller) to set of residing up the board for both Mac or Home windows. A swap at the halt of the board toggles between the two working programs, ensuring the feature keys act properly. Extra keys embrace the two customizable knobs at the halt corners and five macro keys to the left of the board. These and the rest of the board might possibly perhaps even moreover be programmed with initiate offer keyboard firmware QMK and VIA, which most Keychron boards are neatly matched with out of the box.

I in actual fact hold very total keyboard needs so I frail VIA to give the finest knob zoom capabilities, influence the M1 key initiate a clipboard manager and hold the M2 key attain a screenshot. Programming with VIA requires the employ of keycodes and also you’ll want to stipulate macros internal the app to safe the knob to attain extra developed things beyond the pre-selected alternatives, however the implementation of your new instructions is instantaneous (and somewhat enjoyable).

The completely drawbacks are the dearth of tenting and the somewhat immediate USB-C bridge cable connecting the two sides. I chanced on I needed a runt bit extra separation than 9 inches, so I swapped it for a protracted twine. But there’s no straightforward repair for the dearth of middle build shut.

Mavens

Excessive quality build
Relaxed and buttery mechanical keys
Fully split keys preserve your fingers at a ecstatic distance apart
With out pain toggle between Mac and Home windows programs

Cons

No middle tenting
Short bridge cable incorporated

$220 at Amazon

List by Amy Skorheim / Engadget

Perixx makes a bunch of ergonomic keyboards and the Periboard 512 presents total aspects at a low designate. The abnormal keys will work with a Mac, however the incorporated media keys and feature keys are programmed for Home windows machines. It worked neatly on the PC I examined it with, leaping to the search bar, opening the built-in Mail app and muting the sound when I hit the respective keys. The membrane keys are sturdy with out streak and the Alice split and tenting build your fingers in a ecstatic predicament. The inflexible wrist rest angles down, which makes it more easy to rest your fingers and not your wrists.

At fair $70, the 512 isn’t doubtlessly the most top price board and also you might even feel that in the lightweight create and much less expensive-feeling keycaps. But in the event you’re fair shopping for a total Home windows interface with ergonomic aspects that’ll seize most seemingly the most necessary strain off your work posture, right here is an inexpensive way to head.

Mavens

More cost-effective
Alice split makes typing extra ecstatic
Priceless sizzling keys

Cons

Develop doesn’t feel top price
Hotkeys completely neatly matched with Home windows

$55 at Amazon

List by Amy Skorheim / Engadget

A accumulate I spoke with at ZSA warned me about the Voyagerpronouncing the board has an lift out “adore a brain anxiety: A moment in the past you knew the ideally suited way to form, and now you don’t.” That’s exactly how I felt after plugging in the impossibly compact accessory. For one, the columnar structure puts keys (particularly these on the underside row) in spots you don’t intuitively attain for. Then there’s a thumb cluster the set you’ll gain not fair the order bar, however somewhat about a most critical keys adore return. In the end, the board makes employ of layers, giving every key as a lot as a pair functions.

I in actual fact had to interrupt checking out at one point and lunge in any other keyboard due to the I fair felt too tiring and disconnected adore I used to be typing with oven mitts on. Then once more, now that I in actual fact hold the hold of how the Voyager works, it feels magical. No longer frequently ever attain my fingers want to leave the dwelling predicament, yet every key I need on a standard basis is effortlessly accessible.

Because you don’t want to reorient your fingers in the event you utilize arrow keys, hit the silent button or form with the number pad, you’re continuously in the same predicament, which is ready to set up you some serious accrued time. Your thumbs, which will seemingly be somewhat dexterous, are able to doing bigger than fair mashing the spacebar; right here, they operate the return key, tab button and might possibly perhaps even initialize layers. The fully split and extra compact create indicate you how to predicament the two boards anywhere they feel ecstatic and the non-compulsory magnetic legs give it a subtle however effective middle tenting.

Where some keyboards offer remapping capabilities as a nice-to-hold characteristic, the vast majority of other folks will seemingly are looking out to employ both the browser-essentially based Oryx configurator or Zsa’s Keymapp app to swap up what these keys attain. It took me a pair of tries to safe them set of residing in a technique that worked for meso I purchased somewhat familiar with Oryx. It doesn’t require you to search for keycodes, as an different giving you a giant library of searchable commands. But changes aren’t implemented automatically — you might even want to flash the keyboard’s firmware by pushing a button at the halt fringe of the tool to influence the changes.

Particular system-insist functions, adore the Mission Abet watch over key on a Mac, want to be programmed utilizing key sequences (in this case, regulate + down arrow). And infrequently the board will mistake a single tap for a tap and preserve (which customarily enables a 2nd feature). I also flashed the board once and misplaced all employ of the finest facet, however reflashing mounted it.

The Voyager just will not be for someone shopping for a quick adjustment to give a build shut to their ergonomics. It’ll seize weeks of note and reprogramming (each the board and your brain) sooner than typing feels fluid once more. I indicate retaining a screenshot of your most restful Oryx-configured structure on your desktop for reference till you take into accout which keys attain what. That stated, once things initiate clicking, the Voyager in actual fact does maximize your output while minimizing your movements.

If you happen to opt to hold one thing fully split with thumb clusters and a columnar structure however that’s a runt bit much less minimal — and wi-fi moreover — the Kinesis Earnings 360 is a correct one to test up on. It appears to be like to find it irresistible comes from an ‘80s-period IBM predicament of job however is in a technique also from the long speed. The tenting goes from low to intense and the keys curve concavely to meet your fingers the set they naturally land. The 360 is per-key programmableworks with layers and has four macros keys.

Mavens

Fully split board
Center tenting for a natural hand predicament
Thumb cluster lets your thumb attain extra work
Compact size and artful key mapping preserve your fingers in the house predicament

Cons

Sophisticated to relearn ortholinear structure
Takes time to program and be taught the finest key functions

$365 at ZSA

List by Amy Skorheim / Engadget

PC avid gamers who rely on the WASD keys might possibly perhaps even fancy not having to take care of the finest facet of a keyboard at all, and as an different employ that order for his or her mouse. The Freestyle Edge from Kinesis is an completely split model with Cherry MX mechanical switches. The tactile Brown ones in my tester unit had a stunning click and a not overly loud clacky noise. The wrist rests are removable and artful folding legs give you three peak alternatives for tenting and might possibly perhaps even moreover be eliminated entirely.

It has per-key RGB lights and 9 macros buttons that might possibly perhaps moreover be programmed with the configuration app or with out it utilizing keyboard commands. All of this would perhaps perhaps perhaps also enchantment to avid gamers shopping for a programmable keyboard with about a ergonomic ideas. Supreme preserve in mind that each one amongst these aspects add as a lot as a a runt fleshy peripheral.

Mavens

Fully split skill you might even fair employ the left half of
Excessive stage of non-compulsory tenting
Further programmable shortcut keys

Cons

Considerably fleshy
Constructed-in cables must not customizable

$199 at Amazon

The accurate ergonomic keyboards for 2024

Logitech Ergo K860 Wireless Destroy up

Most attention-grabbing wi-fi ergonomic keyboard

Perixx Periboard-512

Most attention-grabbing funds ergonomic keyboard

ZSA Voyager

Most attention-grabbing ergonomic keyboard to interrupt and rebuild your brain

Kinesis Gaming Freestyle Edge

Honorable mention for gaming