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Keyboard and mouse test

Press any key. Keys turn green once they register.

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Keys with a dashed outline, media keys and brightness keys are handled before the browser sees them, so they cannot light here. Nothing is stored or sent. Even so, never type a password into a keyboard tester.

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Keyboard test for Mac

Press keys and watch them light. On a Mac several keys never reach the browser by design, so a dark key is not automatically a broken one — the list below says which ones to ignore.

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The short answer

To test a Mac keyboard, press each key and watch the on-screen layout. Letters, numbers, Command, Option, Control and Shift should all light. The top-row keys in their media mode, the brightness keys and Fn itself are handled by macOS before the browser sees them, so those staying dark is normal.

Getting it right

Four things worth knowing

  • Hold Fn to reach the real function keys

    By default the top row sends media commands that macOS consumes. Hold Fn and those same keys send F1 to F12, which the browser does receive and will light.

  • Check both Command keys separately

    The left and right Command keys are distinct switches. A shortcut that works with one hand and not the other is the clearest possible sign of a failing key.

  • Butterfly keyboards fail from debris

    The 2016–2019 MacBook keyboards are notorious for a single key dying from one crumb. Compressed air at an angle, with the machine on its side, recovers more of these than any software step.

  • Rule out the software before the hardware

    If keys light here but do nothing in one app, check System Settings → Keyboard → Keyboard Shortcuts for a conflict, and Accessibility for Slow Keys or Sticky Keys left switched on.

Nothing leaves your device

This test runs entirely in your browser. There is no upload, no recording and no server that could receive anything — close the tab and it is gone.

  • No sign-up and no account
  • Nothing recorded or stored
  • Works with an ad blocker on
  • Free, and staying free
FAQ

Questions people ask

Anything we've missed?

Tell us

Which Mac keys will not show up in this test?

The media functions on the top row, screen and keyboard brightness, Launchpad, and Fn itself. macOS intercepts them, so the browser never receives an event to draw.

How do I test an external keyboard on a Mac?

The same way — plug it in and press keys. If nothing registers at all, check System Settings → Keyboard, then try the keyboard on another machine before replacing it.

A key types the wrong character.

That is a layout problem rather than a hardware one. Check System Settings → Keyboard → Input Sources and confirm the selected layout matches the physical keyboard.

My MacBook keyboard repeats characters.

A worn or dirty switch sends several events from one press, and the counter beside each key here makes it obvious. On butterfly-era machines it is often dust, and sometimes a service issue.

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Before it matters

Find the problem now, not mid-sentence

Every one of these runs in the browser and checks one thing properly. Nothing is uploaded, nothing is recorded, and none of them need an account.

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