Best keyboard layout for typing

27 Nov 2020 (Updated on 13 June 2021)Admin

What is the best keyboard layout for typing? It is a common yet controversial question that almost everyone wants to know. Dvorak lovers claimed that it is the best and fastest keyboard layout. On the other side, QWERTY lovers take the example of Stella Pajunas Garnand, who made the world record by typing 216 words in a minute using an IBM electric typewriter. So in this post, we will try to understand the effect of keyboard layout on our typing performance.

QWERTY is the oldest and widely used keyboard layout. Although it was designed to make typing slow, many typists can easily type at 100 WPM speed, which I believe is incredible. So we can say that anyone can achieve great speed in any keyboard layout by just practicing. And it is almost impossible to find out the fastest keyboard layout by comparing the output of two typists.

QWERTY vs Dvorak vs Colemak

heatmap of most-typed letters

To understand these layouts and choose the best one, we need to analyze them more scientifically. All the major keyboard layouts (Dvorak, Qwerty, and Colemak) has three keys row. The middle row is called the home row. You can see in the image QWERTY has nine keys in the home row, while the other two have ten keys. The home row is the place where the fingers are initially placed. That's mean the key that present in the home row requires less finger movement and time. As the Dvorak and the Colemak layout have one key more than the QWERTY layout, these two indeed perform a little better than the QWERTY keyboard.

Summary

  • E is the most typed alphabet followed by T, A, O, I, and N.
  • You can type 30 to 32 common English words using only the home row keys of a QWERTY keyboard. For a Colemak keyboard, the number is 436 and with a Dvorak keyboard, 282 words could be typed by using only the home row keys.
  • QWERTY keyboard was designed by Christopher Latham Sholes in the year 1867.
  • August Dvorak and William Dealey developed the Dvorak layout in the year 1936, and the Colemak keyboard layout was designed in the year 2006 by Shai Coleman.

Let's discuss further and find the best one. We have conducted an experiment and stored over 6000 commonly used English words in our database to find out the words we can type by the keys present in the home row.

The result is really surprising; we found only 30 words that we can type using the keys of the home row of a QWERTY keyboard. Here is the list.

List of words you can type using the home row keys of a QWERTY keyboard.

  • glass
  • glad
  • gas
  • flash
  • flash
  • flag
  • fall
  • fall
  • dad
  • ask
  • as
  • as
  • as
  • all
  • all
  • all
  • ah
  • add
  • ad
  • half
  • half
  • half
  • half
  • hall
  • sad
  • salad
  • shall
  • slash
  • ash
  • lad

Dvorak vs Colemak

On the other side, 282 words could be typed by the Dvorak keyboard layout's home row keys. And when we check the third one, the result is fascinating; you can type 436 common English words using the home row keys of a Colemak keyboard. Here is the list.

List of words you can type using the home row keys of a Dvorak keyboard.

  1. estate
  2. end
  3. end
  4. edition
  5. edit
  6. eat
  7. east
  8. east
  9. east
  10. dust
  11. due
  12. donate
  13. do
  14. dishonest
  15. dish
  16. disease
  17. diet
  18. die
  19. destination
  20. dentist
  21. death
  22. dead
  23. date
  24. date
  25. data
  26. dad
  27. aunt
  28. attitude
  29. attention
  30. attention
  31. attend
  32. at
  33. assistant
  34. assistant
  35. assist
  36. assess
  37. as
  38. as
  39. as
  40. and
  41. aid
  42. aid
  43. ahead
  44. ah
  45. addition
  46. add
  47. ad
  48. tooth
  49. too
  50. tone
  51. toe
  52. to
  53. to
  54. tin
  55. tie
  56. tie
  57. thus
  58. thousand
  59. this
  60. this
  61. this
  62. thin
  63. then
  64. the
  65. that
  66. that
  67. that
  68. that
  69. than
  70. than
  71. test
  72. test
  73. tent
  74. tennis
  75. tend
  76. ten
  77. tea
  78. taste
  79. taste
  80. sun
  81. suit
  82. suit
  83. sudden
  84. studio
  85. student
  86. stone
  87. status
  88. statue
  89. station
  90. state
  91. state
  92. state
  93. stand
  94. stand
  95. south
  96. south
  97. south
  98. sound
  99. sound
  100. soon
  101. son
  102. so
  103. so
  104. used
  105. use
  106. use
  107. us
  108. united
  109. unit
  110. union
  111. tune
  112. hand
  113. hand
  114. hat
  115. hate
  116. hate
  117. he
  118. head
  119. head
  120. heat
  121. heat
  122. hesitate
  123. hi
  124. hide
  125. his
  126. his
  127. hit
  128. hit
  129. honest
  130. host
  131. host
  132. hot
  133. house
  134. house
  135. hunt
  136. hunt
  137. I
  138. idea
  139. in
  140. in
  141. indeed
  142. inside
  143. inside
  144. inside
  145. inside
  146. insist
  147. instead
  148. institute
  149. institution
  150. intend
  151. intended
  152. intense
  153. intention
  154. into
  155. issue
  156. issue
  157. IT
  158. it
  159. its
  160. nation
  161. neat
  162. need
  163. need
  164. need
  165. net
  166. nine
  167. nineteen
  168. no
  169. no
  170. no one
  171. noise
  172. none
  173. nose
  174. not
  175. note
  176. note
  177. notion
  178. nut
  179. odd
  180. oh
  181. on
  182. on
  183. one
  184. one
  185. one
  186. onion
  187. onto
  188. out
  189. out
  190. outside
  191. outside
  192. outside
  193. outside
  194. sad
  195. sand
  196. sea
  197. season
  198. seat
  199. seat
  200. see
  201. seed
  202. send
  203. sense
  204. sense
  205. session
  206. set
  207. set
  208. shade
  209. she
  210. sheet
  211. shine
  212. shoe
  213. shoot
  214. shot
  215. shout
  216. shout
  217. shut
  218. shut
  219. side
  220. sit
  221. site
  222. situation
  223. saint
  224. sensation
  225. shed
  226. shoot
  227. sin
  228. situated
  229. sound
  230. stun
  231. sue
  232. suite
  233. sustain
  234. teens
  235. tenant
  236. tension
  237. thesis
  238. tide
  239. tissue
  240. ton
  241. tonne
  242. toss
  243. tuition
  244. unite
  245. aide
  246. AIDS
  247. ash
  248. aside
  249. assassination
  250. asset
  251. attain
  252. audio
  253. audit
  254. auto
  255. deed
  256. dense
  257. detain
  258. detention
  259. distant
  260. donation
  261. dose
  262. dot
  263. duo
  264. ease
  265. ease
  266. ensue
  267. enthusiast
  268. haunt
  269. hidden
  270. hint
  271. hint
  272. ID
  273. idiot
  274. initiate
  275. instant
  276. intent
  277. nest
  278. net
  279. nod
  280. nonsense
  281. noon
  282. odds

List of words you can type using the home row keys of a Colemak keyboard.

  1. estate
  2. error
  3. entire
  4. entertain
  5. enter
  6. end
  7. end
  8. either
  9. either
  10. either
  11. editor
  12. edition
  13. edit
  14. eat
  15. eastern
  16. east
  17. east
  18. east
  19. earth
  20. earn
  21. ear
  22. dressed
  23. dress
  24. dress
  25. door
  26. donate
  27. do
  28. dishonest
  29. dish
  30. disease
  31. disaster
  32. dirt
  33. dinner
  34. diet
  35. die
  36. destination
  37. desire
  38. desire
  39. desert
  40. desert
  41. dentist
  42. death
  43. dear
  44. dear
  45. dead
  46. date
  47. date
  48. data
  49. dad
  50. attention
  51. attention
  52. attend
  53. at
  54. assistant
  55. assistant
  56. assist
  57. assess
  58. as
  59. as
  60. as
  61. artist
  62. art
  63. arrest
  64. arrest
  65. arise
  66. area
  67. another
  68. another
  69. and
  70. air
  71. aid
  72. aid
  73. ahead
  74. ah
  75. address
  76. address
  77. addition
  78. add
  79. ad
  80. trend
  81. tree
  82. treat
  83. transition
  84. trainer
  85. train
  86. train
  87. tradition
  88. trade
  89. trade
  90. tooth
  91. too
  92. tone
  93. toe
  94. to
  95. to
  96. tired
  97. tin
  98. tie
  99. tie
  100. throat
  101. three
  102. threaten
  103. threat
  104. this
  105. this
  106. this
  107. thirteen
  108. third
  109. thin
  110. there
  111. then
  112. theirs
  113. their
  114. theatre
  115. the
  116. that
  117. that
  118. that
  119. that
  120. than
  121. than
  122. test
  123. test
  124. tent
  125. tennis
  126. tend
  127. ten
  128. tear
  129. tear
  130. tea
  131. taste
  132. taste
  133. T-shirt
  134. stress
  135. stress
  136. street
  137. store
  138. store
  139. stone
  140. station
  141. state
  142. state
  143. state
  144. start
  145. start
  146. stare
  147. star
  148. star
  149. standard
  150. standard
  151. stand
  152. stand
  153. stair
  154. sort
  155. sort
  156. soon
  157. son
  158. so
  159. so
  160. hair
  161. hand
  162. hand
  163. hard
  164. hard
  165. hat
  166. hate
  167. hate
  168. he
  169. head
  170. head
  171. hear
  172. heart
  173. heat
  174. heat
  175. her
  176. her
  177. here
  178. hero
  179. hers
  180. hesitate
  181. hi
  182. hide
  183. hire
  184. hire
  185. his
  186. his
  187. hit
  188. hit
  189. honest
  190. horror
  191. horse
  192. host
  193. host
  194. hot
  195. I
  196. idea
  197. in
  198. in
  199. indeed
  200. indoor
  201. indoors
  202. inner
  203. inside
  204. inside
  205. inside
  206. inside
  207. insist
  208. instead
  209. intend
  210. intended
  211. intense
  212. intention
  213. interest
  214. interest
  215. interested
  216. internet
  217. into
  218. iron
  219. iron
  220. IT
  221. it
  222. its
  223. nation
  224. near
  225. near
  226. near
  227. neat
  228. need
  229. need
  230. need
  231. neither
  232. neither
  233. neither
  234. net
  235. nine
  236. nineteen
  237. no
  238. no
  239. no one
  240. noise
  241. none
  242. nor
  243. nor
  244. north
  245. north
  246. north
  247. northern
  248. nose
  249. not
  250. note
  251. note
  252. notion
  253. odd
  254. oh
  255. on
  256. on
  257. one
  258. one
  259. one
  260. onion
  261. onto
  262. or
  263. order
  264. order
  265. other
  266. other
  267. radio
  268. rain
  269. rain
  270. raise
  271. rare
  272. rate
  273. rate
  274. rather
  275. read
  276. reader
  277. reason
  278. red
  279. red
  280. rent
  281. rent
  282. resident
  283. resident
  284. resist
  285. resort
  286. rest
  287. rest
  288. retain
  289. retire
  290. retired
  291. rid
  292. ride
  293. ride
  294. rise
  295. rise
  296. road
  297. root
  298. sad
  299. sand
  300. sea
  301. season
  302. seat
  303. seat
  304. see
  305. seed
  306. send
  307. senior
  308. sense
  309. sense
  310. series
  311. session
  312. set
  313. set
  314. shade
  315. share
  316. share
  317. she
  318. sheet
  319. shine
  320. shirt
  321. shoe
  322. shoot
  323. short
  324. shot
  325. side
  326. sir
  327. sister
  328. sit
  329. site
  330. raid
  331. rat
  332. ratio
  333. rear
  334. rear
  335. render
  336. reside
  337. restoration
  338. restore
  339. restraint
  340. retreat
  341. retreat
  342. riot
  343. rod
  344. rose
  345. rotate
  346. rotation
  347. saint
  348. senator
  349. sensation
  350. shatter
  351. shed
  352. sheer
  353. shoot
  354. shore
  355. sin
  356. soar
  357. steer
  358. stir
  359. strain
  360. strand
  361. teens
  362. tenant
  363. tender
  364. tension
  365. terrain
  366. terror
  367. terrorist
  368. thesis
  369. thread
  370. tide
  371. ton
  372. tonne
  373. toss
  374. trait
  375. transit
  376. trio
  377. adhere
  378. aide
  379. AIDS
  380. arena
  381. ash
  382. aside
  383. assassination
  384. assert
  385. assertion
  386. asset
  387. attain
  388. dare
  389. deed
  390. dense
  391. detain
  392. detention
  393. deteriorate
  394. disorder
  395. distant
  396. distort
  397. distress
  398. distress
  399. donation
  400. donor
  401. dose
  402. dot
  403. drain
  404. ease
  405. ease
  406. endorse
  407. era
  408. harsh
  409. hatred
  410. hidden
  411. hint
  412. hint
  413. historian
  414. horn
  415. ID
  416. idiot
  417. inherent
  418. inherit
  419. initiate
  420. insert
  421. insertion
  422. insider
  423. instant
  424. intent
  425. interior
  426. interior
  427. nest
  428. net
  429. nod
  430. nonsense
  431. noon
  432. odds
  433. orientation
  434. radar
  435. radiation
  436. raid

Now it is clear that Colemak keyboard user needs to move fingers less than the QWERTY users. And less finger movement means quick typing. Although many QWERTY typists can really type fast, it's proved that Dvorak and Colemak are more scientifically designed to make your typing faster.

I hope this fair comparison helps you learn something new.

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