Morse Code Keyboard

This keyboard turns your taps into letters. Click the message box and use your spacebar like a telegraph key: a quick tap is a dot and a longer hold is a dash. Pause and the letter appears. You can also press the dot and dash buttons, which is how Morse typing works on a phone.

If you'd rather type normal text and get the Morse code for it, use the main translator.

How to use the online Morse keyboard

• Spacebar or "Hold to key": Works like a straight key. A short press is a dot and a press about three times as long is a dash.
• Dot and Dash buttons (or the . and - keys): One press, one symbol. No timing needed, so it's easier for beginners.
• Pause after each letter and it commits. Pause a bit longer and you get a space.
• Backspace removes the last symbol, or the last letter if you're between letters.
• Speed sets how long a dot is. At 12 words per minute a dot is 100 ms. If your dashes keep coming out as dots, slow it down.

Stuck on a letter? Keep the alphabet chart open in another tab, or learn the patterns with the practice trainer.

Morse code keyboard on Android and iPhone (Gboard)

Google's Gboard keyboard has a Morse code layout with two big keys, one for dot and one for dash. Google built it with Tania Finlayson, who was born with cerebral palsy and has used Morse to communicate since the 1980s. She wrote about why it matters to her when it came to iPhone in 2018.

To turn it on for Android (Google's instructions):

1. Install Gboard if you don't already have it.
2. Go to Settings > System > Languages & input > Virtual keyboard > Gboard > Languages.
3. Tap English (US), swipe to the Morse code layout, select it, and tap Done.

To turn it on for iPhone or iPad (Google's instructions):

1. Open the Gboard app and go to Languages > Add Language.
2. Pick Morse Code (US). If you already have several languages, you may need to remove one first.
3. In any text box, hold the globe key and switch to Morse code.

On Android you can also change how long Gboard waits before it turns your dots and dashes into a letter, and you can connect external switches for dot and dash (Google Help).

Does iPhone have its own Morse keyboard? Not built in. Apple's Switch Control helps people with limited movement control an iPhone with switches, but it doesn't include Morse typing. For Morse on iPhone, Gboard is the easy route.

Learning Morse to type faster

Google also made a free game called the Morse Typing Trainer to teach the letters, and Google says most people can learn the alphabet in under an hour with it. We have our own tips in how to memorize Morse code and how to learn Morse code fast.

Morse keyboards and accessibility

For some people Morse isn't a hobby. It's how they type. Because it only needs two inputs (or one, with timing), a person who can move a single finger, a knee or their head can write anything. Google's Hello Morse collection has switch guides, DIY projects and code for building Morse input into other apps.

Using a real Morse key as a keyboard

Ham radio operators can connect a real straight key or paddles to a computer with a small USB adapter that sends key presses. One open-source example is the pico_vband adapter built on a Raspberry Pi Pico. Want to know how those keys evolved? See Morse code machines.

Frequently asked questions

How do I type in Morse code? Use the keyboard above: tap the spacebar for a dot and hold it for a dash, or press the dot and dash buttons. On a phone, turn on Gboard's Morse code layout.

How do I get the Morse code keyboard on my phone? Install Gboard. On Android, add the Morse code layout under English (US). On iPhone, add "Morse Code (US)" as a language in the Gboard app.

Does iPhone have a Morse code keyboard? Not built into iOS. Gboard for iPhone adds one.

What's the difference between this and the translator? The translator converts typed text into dots and dashes. This keyboard works the other way: you key the dots and dashes and it writes the text.

Related: tap code · Morse code machines · audio translator · practice trainer