How to test your keyboard
Press every key once. Each key turns green while it is down and keeps a mark after, so a key that never lights up is not sending a signal. The counter shows how many keys of the chosen keyboard you have tested.
Pick the size that matches your keyboard: full size with a number pad, tenkeyless without it, or compact for the main block only. Press the extra key next to the left Shift and the tester switches to the ISO layout used on most European keyboards.
In Chrome and Edge the key labels follow your own keyboard layout, because those browsers share it with web pages. Other browsers show US labels; the test itself works the same everywhere.
Ghosting and n-key rollover
Hold several keys down together. Most at once shows the largest number of keys the keyboard reported at the same time. If a key you are holding does not light up, the keyboard cannot report that combination: it has a rollover limit or ghosting there.
Keyboards limited to the basic USB boot protocol report up to six keys at once plus the modifier keys. Keyboards with n-key rollover report every key. Test the combinations you actually use, such as W, A, S and D with Shift and Space for games.
Key chatter
A worn or dirty switch can register one press as two. The tester flags a key that is pressed again within the chosen time after it was released, 50 ms by default. Very fast typing can trigger it too, so treat a flag as a reason to test that key again slowly.
Keys a browser cannot see
- Fn. On most keyboards it is handled inside the keyboard: it changes what other keys send but sends no key of its own.
- System shortcuts. Shortcuts your operating system or browser handles first, such as closing a tab or locking the screen, never reach the page.
- Print Screen. Some systems report only its release; the tester still marks it as tested.
- Media and extra keys. Volume, play and F13 and above appear by name under Other keys pressed when the browser receives them.
- Mac. Keys released while Command is held may not report their release; the tester clears them when you let go of Command.
Reading the event log
- key: the character or key name the key produces in your current layout.
- code: the physical key position, the same on every layout.
- location: 0 for most keys, 1 for the left and 2 for the right Shift, Ctrl, Alt and Win or Cmd, 3 for the number pad.
- repeat: yes while a held key auto repeats.
- gap: time since the previous key event.
Keys work but type the wrong characters?
Then the keyboard is fine and the layout setting is not. See how to add or switch a keyboard language, or keyboard layouts of the world for QWERTY, QWERTZ, AZERTY and the ISO key. To type another alphabet, pick one of the 70 language keyboards.
Questions
How do I test my keyboard online?
Open the keyboard tester and press every key once. Each key lights up while it is held and stays marked after, so any key that never lights up is not sending a signal.
Why does a key not light up?
Either the key sends no signal, which points to a hardware fault, or it is a key the browser never receives: the Fn key on most keyboards and shortcuts your operating system handles first.
What is n-key rollover?
N-key rollover means the keyboard reports every key you hold at the same time. Keyboards limited to the basic USB boot protocol report up to six keys at once plus the modifier keys.
Is anything I type sent anywhere?
No. Key presses are processed in your browser and are not sent to this site or anyone else.