How to type in Korean
Typing Korean is easier than it looks. You add a Korean keyboard to your device, and then you type the letters of each syllable in reading order. The computer stacks them into blocks for you.
1. Add the Korean keyboard
You don't need a Korean keyboard with Hangul printed on the keys. Every device comes with a Korean input you can switch on. Pick the standard layout, called 2-set or 두벌식 (dubeolsik). Almost everyone in Korea uses it.
Windows 10 and 11
- Open Settings → Time & language → Language & region.
- Choose Add a language, search for Korean and install it. You can leave the optional extras unticked.
- Switch between keyboards with Windows + Space.
- With Korean selected, press Right Alt (the 한/영 key on Korean keyboards) to flip between Hangul and English letters. The taskbar shows 가 for Hangul and A for English.
Mac
- Open System Settings → Keyboard, then Text Input → Edit.
- Click +, choose Korean, pick 2-Set Korean and add it.
- Switch with Control + Space, the globe key, or Caps Lock if you turn on "Use Caps Lock to switch".
iPhone and iPad
- Open Settings → General → Keyboard → Keyboards → Add New Keyboard.
- Choose Korean and the Standard layout (the same 2-set layout).
- Tap the globe key on the keyboard to switch.
Android (Gboard)
- Open Gboard's settings, then Languages → Add keyboard → Korean.
- Pick the 2-set layout, shown as 두벌식 (2-Bulsik), rather than 천지인.
- Tap the globe key, or hold the space bar, to switch.
2. Learn where the letters are
The layout has a simple logic: consonants on the left, vowels on the right. Your left hand types the consonants and your right hand the vowels, so typing Korean mostly alternates hands.
The full chart with every letter is on the Korean keyboard layout page.
3. Type syllables in reading order
Every Korean syllable block is a first consonant, a vowel, and sometimes a final consonant. You type them in that order and the keyboard builds the block as you go. There's no key to press between syllables.
| Word | Letters in order | Keys |
|---|---|---|
| 한국어 | ㅎ ㅏ ㄴ · ㄱ ㅜ ㄱ · ㅇ ㅓ | G K S R N R D J |
| 사랑해 | ㅅ ㅏ · ㄹ ㅏ ㅇ · ㅎ ㅐ | T K F K D G O |
| 감사합니다 | ㄱ ㅏ ㅁ · ㅅ ㅏ · ㅎ ㅏ ㅂ · ㄴ ㅣ · ㄷ ㅏ | R K A T K G K Q S L E K |
Watch the screen while you type 한: after G you see ㅎ, after K 하, after S 한. When the next vowel arrives, a final consonant can jump forward: type 하, ㄴ, then ㅏ and you get 하나, not 한ㅏ. The keyboard always moves the consonant to where it makes a valid syllable.
4. Double consonants, combined vowels and double finals
- Double (tense) consonants ㄲ ㄸ ㅃ ㅆ ㅉ: hold Shift with the plain consonant. 쓰다 is Shift+T, M, E, K.
- ㅒ and ㅖ are Shift + O and Shift + P: 얘기, 예요.
- Combined vowels are typed as their two parts: ㅘ is ㅗ + ㅏ (H K), ㅝ is ㅜ + ㅓ (N J), ㅢ is ㅡ + ㅣ (M L). So 와요 is D H K D Y.
- Double final consonants like ㄺ, ㄳ and ㅄ are also typed as two consonants in a row: 읽다 is D L F R E K.
5. Fixing mistakes
While a syllable is still being built, Backspace removes one letter at a time, so 한 becomes 하 rather than disappearing. Once you've moved on (for example after a space), Backspace removes the whole block. A syllable that won't form usually means a vowel was skipped: every block needs one.
6. Practise with real Korean
Knowing the layout and being able to type are different things. The quickest way to close the gap is short daily practice with sentences you actually want to read. On KoreanAssist you type real Korean word by word: paste any text, or type along with a YouTube video's Korean subtitles. An on-screen keyboard shows the next key, and you hear each word and can look up its meaning as you go.
Start typing on KoreanAssist Free, in your browser, nothing to install.