Different keyboards offer their users a wide variety of different typing benefits, from faster type speeds, to more fun, creative typing options, and even customizable keyboard interfaces (including style, color and layout).
You can download a whole range of third-party keyboards for Android smartphones and tablets from the Google Play Store.
To learn how to switch between keyboards on Android, simply follow our instructions below. For all other information, or if you have other pressing questions, please see our FAQ section at the end of this article.
Table of Contents
How to change keyboard mode on Android
- On your Android device, open the keyboard by tapping any text box or search bar on any app
- Locate the three horizontal ‘More’ option dots (usually top-right above the keyboard) and tap on them to open more options
- On the next option screen, tap ‘Modes’
- You can now select ‘Standard Keyboard’, ‘One-handed Keyboard’ or ‘Floating Keyboard’
- Note: You can also change the size of the keyboard by tapping ‘Keyboard size’
- Select a mode by tapping it; return to Standard Mode by following steps 1-4 and selecting ‘Standard Keyboard’ at any time
How to switch between keyboards on Android (Method #1)
- On your Android device, open the keyboard by tapping any text box or search bar on any app
- Locate the keyboard switch button in the bottom-right below the keyboard and to the right of the ‘Back’ button (it looks like a mini-keyboard)
- Tap the keyboard switch button now
- Select the keyboard you wish to switch to from the options below ‘Choose input method’ by tapping on the relevant keyboard
How to switch between keyboards on Android (Method #2)
- On your Android device, navigate to Settings by tapping the settings app icon
- Scroll down to and tap on ‘General management > Language and input’ (or simply ‘Language and input’ depending on your device make
- In the Language and input settings, tap on ‘Virtual/On-screen Keyboard’
- Next, tap ‘Manage keyboards’
- Find the keyboard you want to use and ensure that the toggle next to it is tapped to switch from OFF (gray) to ON (blue)
- Go back to the keyboard settings page, and now tap ‘Default keyboard’
- Finally, select a new default keyboard by tapping the one you want to switch to
Three different ways of altering the keyboard you use, simply and effectively. For more information or further answers to your questions, see our FAQs below.
FAQs
What keyboards are available for Android devices?
On Android devices, you’ll always be presented with a default keyboard, which you’ll see and use whenever you go to enter any text or type anything on any app, messaging platform, or online form. Except, the standard (or default) keyboards which come with Android devices (some, like Samsung devices, offer their own keyboards), are not the only keyboards you can have on your Android smartphone or tablet.
In fact, there are scores and scores of other, alternative keyboards at your disposal. Some of these keyboards are available for free from the Google Play Store, whilst others will charge you a small fee to use. To list them all here would be counterproductive, as there simply are that many options.
However, some of the most popular keyboards available for Android users include Microsoft’s SwiftKey and Google’s Gboard. These two keyboards dominate the keyboard market, today, and so you may find that the Google Play Store doesn’t have much to offer that surpasses these two keyboards’ quality.
Nevertheless, other keyboards worthy of note include:
- AI Type Keyboard
- Flesky
- Grammarly
- AnySoftKeyboard
- Hacker’s Keyboard
- Multiling O Keyboard
- Typewise Custom Keyboard
- Simple Keyboard
Why would you need to switch between keyboards on Android?
The standard keyboards which come with Android devices are, for most users, just fine. Passable, acceptable, however you want to call it, most Android users will not see any need to change the keyboard they use when typing on their phone or tablet.
And yet, that’s not to say that those default keyboards couldn’t use some improvements. Other keyboards out there are better designed to adapt to different users’ needs. Some are geared toward fun and creativity, whilst others are all about typing speed and functionality. Some even combine the two.
Ultimately, you should look to get a different keyboard for your Android device if you’re finding the native keyboard to be a little clunky, or you would like greater customization options (i.e. you want to be able to decide where to find certain numbers, symbols and letters). Similarly, you should think about getting a new keyboard for your Android device if you need to type a lot on your phone and are unsatisfied with the speed of typing your current Android keyboard affords you.
To learn how to switch between keyboards on Android, simply follow our step-by-step tutorial above.
How many keyboards can you have on one Android device?
There is no limit to the number of different, non-standard keyboards you can download, install and use on your Android device. This, of course, is one of the major perks of any Android device – the ability to modify its UX by customizing almost every element of it from the ground up.
Whilst an iPhone won’t allow you to install just any keyboard, an Android will. Thankfully, it allows you to install as many different keyboards as you like, for just as many purposes. You can switch between keyboards easily, too, just by following our step-by-step instructions as detailed above.
