As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. If you buy something through a link on this page, I may get a small commission at no extra cost to you. It does not change what I recommend and it does not change your price.
How to pick
Start with layout, because it decides more than anything else. A full size board has the number pad, which matters enormously if you type figures and not at all if you do not. Tenkeyless drops the number pad and gives your mouse hand back some desk. 75 percent squeezes the arrows and function row in tight, which is compact and takes a week to get used to. Next, mechanical or membrane. Mechanical boards feel better, last far longer and can be repaired a key at a time; they also cost more and are louder, which matters if you share a room or take calls. Within mechanical, linear switches are the quietest and smoothest, tactile give you a bump so you know the key registered, and clicky are the ones that will get you complained about. Last thing, and the one people skip: if your hands are not what they were, size and key travel matter more than any of the above.
What I recommend
Mechanical
Better to type on, lasts years longer, and repairable one key at a time. Louder than what you are used to, which is the trade.
AULA F75
A 75 percent board with a gasket mount, which is the construction that gives it a fuller, less hollow sound than most mechanical keyboards at this price. Three ways to connect: Bluetooth, a 2.4GHz dongle for lower latency, and USB-C wired. The sockets are hot swappable, so switches pull out and replace by hand with no soldering. Mine has LEOBOG Reaper switches in it, which are linear, so there is no bump or click, just a smooth press the whole way down. They take about 45 grams to press and register partway down at 1.8mm rather than at the bottom, which is why they feel quick. There is a volume knob in the top corner, which sounds trivial until you have had one.
- Gasket mount, so it sounds fuller and less hollow than most at the price
- Hot swappable, so switches change by hand with no soldering
- Three connection modes including a low latency dongle
- 4000mAh battery lasts weeks with the lighting off
- Reaper switches are smooth and rated for 60 million presses
- I have had no real problems with mine
- The volume knob is temperamental. Sometimes it will not turn until I click it in, and clicking it in mutes the audio, so I end up muting myself just to change the volume
- No number pad, so it is the wrong keyboard for bookkeeping or data entry
- The 75 percent layout crams the arrows and function row together, and takes about a week to stop reaching for the wrong key
- Marketed as silent, and it is not. Linear means no click, but it still makes a solid noise on the way down, so think twice for a shared office
- RGB lighting eats the battery quickly if you leave it on
- Layout
- 75 percent, 81 keys, volume knob
- Switches
- LEOBOG Reaper, linear, 45g
- Travel
- Registers at 1.8mm, 3.6mm total
- Connects
- Bluetooth, 2.4GHz dongle, USB-C
- Battery
- 4000mAh, weeks with lighting off
- Sockets
- Hot swappable, 3 and 5 pin
Keychron K series
The obvious pick if you want a mechanical board that does not fight macOS. Mac key layout printed correctly, the modifier keys in the right order, and a switch on the back to flip between Mac and Windows layouts. Hot swappable across most of the range, wireless and wired, and available in every layout from 60 percent up to full size.
- Mac layout printed correctly rather than remapped
- Switches between Mac and Windows layouts on a toggle
- Available in every size from compact to full
- Hot swappable on most models
- Costs noticeably more than the AULA
- Heavier than it looks, so not one for carrying about
- Some models need firmware fiddling to remap keys properly
Wireless, quiet and easy
If mechanical is not the point and you want something comfortable, quiet and immediately familiar. This is what suits most people, and almost everyone who is not a keyboard enthusiast.
Logitech K380
Small, light, and pairs with three devices, so one keyboard covers a tablet, a phone and a computer. Round keys, quiet, and it will run for around two years on a pair of AAA batteries. Good travel keyboard and a good choice if a full size board is more than you need.
- Switches between three devices on a button
- Around two years on a pair of AAAs
- Small enough to carry, quiet enough for anywhere
- Works with tablets and phones as well as computers
- No number pad and no backlight
- Round keys take some adjusting to
- Too small to be comfortable as a main desktop keyboard
Logitech MK540 wireless combo
Keyboard and mouse together, full size with the number pad, both running off one small receiver. The keys are quiet, the mouse fits an adult hand rather than a laptop trackpad, and the batteries last long enough that you forget they are in there. This is the sensible answer for a desktop that just needs to work.
- Number pad, which matters for figures
- One receiver runs both, so only one USB port used
- Battery life measured in years on the keyboard
- Mouse is full size rather than a travel one
- Membrane keys, so it feels soft next to mechanical
- Uses the older unifying receiver rather than Bluetooth
- Nothing about it is exciting, which is rather the point
- Includes
- Keyboard and mouse
- Layout
- Full size with number pad
- Connection
- One small USB receiver for both
- Battery
- Up to 3 years on the keyboard
Logitech MX Keys
Low profile, quiet, and the keys have small dished tops that your fingertips settle into, which sounds like marketing until you have typed on it for a week. Backlit, and the light comes on when your hands approach rather than staying on. Pairs with three devices at once and switches between them with a button, which is genuinely useful if you have a laptop and a desktop.
- Quiet enough for a shared room or a call
- Dished keycaps make it noticeably more accurate to type on
- Backlight comes on as your hands approach
- Switches between three paired devices on a button
- Low profile, so it feels shallow if you are used to mechanical
- Not repairable, a failed key means a new keyboard
- The full size version is long, check your desk
Related reading
Not sure what would suit you?
Tell me what you use the computer for and whether noise matters, and I will point you at the right shape of keyboard rather than the most expensive one.