Why Are The Keys On A Keyboard Arranged Randomly?

If you've ever used a laptop, desktop, or mobile keyboard, you've probably noticed that the letters aren’t arranged like they are in books - alphabetically. This might confuse new users at first, but they quickly adapt to it. But do you know why the letters on a keyboard are not arranged in a straightforward sequence?

QWERTY keyboard layout, Keyboard history, Why keyboards aren't alphabetical, QWERTY vs Dvorak, Best keyboard layouts for typing

When you look at any keyboard, you’ll see that A, B, C, and D are not placed in order. Have you ever wondered why?


The QWERTY format, which is the layout most commonly used today, was created long before computers existed, back in the era of typewriters. This layout was designed by Christopher Latham Sholes in 1873 to prevent the mechanical arms of typewriters from jamming, especially when frequently used letters like ‘T’ and ‘H’ or ‘S’ and ‘H’ were typed in quick succession. By spacing these common letter pairs out, jamming was less likely.


While there are other more efficient layouts, such as Dvorak and Colemak, QWERTY remains the standard due to its long-standing use. Adopting a new layout would require retraining millions of people and redesigning both hardware and software, which would be quite costly.

And so, despite its quirks, QWERTY continues to thrive.

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