Why is my Chromebook not letting me type?
Other keyboard problems
If you are having problems with your keyboard, try these steps: Restart the Chromebook. Press and hold the [Power button] until the device power off, then power it on again. Try to use the keys in the Guest account.
Although this can be done intentionally, it usually happens by accident when Ctrl + Spacebar are pressed. To change the Chromebook keyboard back to US settings, press Ctrl + Spacebar again. This keyboard combination is used to switch back and forth between US and INTL keyboards.
- Sign in to your Chromebook.
- At the bottom right, select the time.
- Select Settings. Accessibility.
- Under "Keyboard and text input," turn on On-screen keyboard.
Press and hold down the "refresh" button (which is located just above the 3 and 4 keys) and tap the power button. 3. Release the refresh button when you see your Chromebook starting back up.
Sticky keys
This feature makes it possible to press only one key at a time in sequence to activate a keyboard shortcut, instead of having to hold down multiple keys at once.
Some of the reasons a keyboard might be unresponsive include: The computer is frozen: If the computer or an app is frozen or locked up, you won't be able to type. The keyboard is disconnected: The keyboard may have been unplugged, ran out of batteries, or the wireless connection may have been disrupted.
While on the login screen for a Chromebook, select the settings menu from the bottom right. Select Accessibility. Locate the checkbox to toggle the keyboard off.
Go to settings and select Ease of Access. Under interaction, select Keyboards. Toggle on "Use the Onscreen Keyboard".
- Reseat the Keyboard. ...
- Reboot Your PC. ...
- Update Chrome. ...
- Clear Google Chrome Cache. ...
- Use Incognito Mode and Disable Extensions. ...
- Disable Hardware Acceleration. ...
- Stop Chrome from Running in the Background. ...
- Reset Google Chrome.
First turn off your Chromebook completely (don't just close the lid). Next, hold down the Refresh key and then press and hold the Power button. Hold both down for 10 seconds. Release the Refresh key and then the Power button and your Chromebook will restart.
Why is my keyboard typing everything wrong?
Your keyboard might type the wrong characters due to malware infections. Remember, keyloggers are common and they can change your keyboard settings. Keyloggers are often undetected, but they can cause various keyboard issues. Check out a good antivirus guide for software recommendations.
Google has tweaked the keyboard of its Chromebooks in ways that emphasize how Chrome OS differs from Microsoft Windows and Apple macOS. And what makes things even more confusing is that the layout of the keyboard can vary depending on the model of Chromebook you are using.

Looking for caps lock? press ALT + SEARCH ★ To lock your Chromebook screen, press Ctrl+Shift+L ★ Ctrl+Alt+Shift+Reload will make your Chromebook do a barrel roll. Its cool!
Ctrl + Switcher/F5 – Take a screenshot and save it to your Downloads folder The Switcher key is located in place of the F5 key on a standard keyboard. Ctrl + Shift + Switcher/F5 – Take a screenshot of part of the screen. Use the cursor to select the part of the screen you want to save.
You can also rotate the window 90° at a time by pressing the key combo 'Ctrl + Shift + Refresh' which has a slightly greater value. ;-) For these and other keyboard shortcuts press 'Ctrl + Alt + /' to see a complete listing.
Sticky Keys is a feature in Windows that allows modifier keys like Ctrl and Shift to remain active even when you're not pressing them. This can help users with physical impairments, who have trouble pressing two keys at a time (like using Shift to make uppercase letters).
Sticky Keys lets you press a modifier key which are the Shift, Ctrl, and Alt keys, and then another key after that for commands. For example, if you have to save a document, you need to press Ctrl + S keys together. In case you can't do that, Sticky Keys lets you press both these keys one after the other.
Sticky Keys help you to use Modifier Keys ( Ctrl, Shift, Alt, & ⊞ ) without needing to press them constantly. For instance, these can help you select all, copy and paste by pressing A, C, and V, instead of using Ctrl+A , Ctrl+C , and Ctrl+V . In short, they make a specific modifier key 'stick' until you turn them off.
To lock your keyboard, press Ctrl+Alt+L. The Keyboard Locker icon changes to indicate that the keyboard is locked.
- Unplug the keyboard.
- With the keyboard unplugged, hold down the ESC key.
- While holding down the ESC key, plug the keyboard back into the computer.
- Keep holding the ESC key until the keyboard begins to flash.
- Unplug the keyboard again, then plug it back in.
Why is my keyboard not typing letters?
Your computer may just be frozen or you might not be typing in a text field. Your Bluetooth Keyboard may not be connected. Try charging or changing the battery if the keyboard has one! You can also plug the keyboard into a different port.
The reset button causes the microcontroller on your keyboard to enter bootloader mode. That sounds rather technical, but it's really easy: pressing the reset button tells your keyboard to prepare itself for new incoming firmware. This is very useful, because it allows you to flash new firmware to your keyboard.
Press and hold the Refresh + Power buttons for 10 seconds. Release the Refresh key first and let go of the Power button when your Chromebook starts up.
Lock your screen. Use one of these options: On a keyboard: Press Search + L. Or press Launcher + L.
You may have accidentally locked your keyboard due to the sticky and filter key functions being enabled. Step 1: On Windows 10, open Settings, and then select the Ease of access tab. Scroll down to the Interaction section on the sidebar and select Keyboard.
To unlock the keyboard, you have to hold down the right SHIFT key for 8 seconds again to turn off Filter Keys, or disable Filter Keys from the Control Panel. If your keyboard doesn't type the correct characters, it's possible that you've turned on NumLock or you're using a incorrect keyboard layout.
Go to Start > then select Settings > Ease of Access > Keyboard, and turn on the toggle under Use the On-Screen Keyboard.
Restart your computer or device. Sometimes simply restarting your computer or device can resolve issues with the virtual keyboard not working. Clear your browser's cache and cookies. Clearing your browser's cache and cookies can sometimes resolve issues with the virtual keyboard not working.
Tablet mode makes Windows 10 more touch-friendly when using your device as a tablet. Select action center on the taskbar (next to the date and time), and then select Tablet mode to turn it on or off.
Step 1: Click the options/time area in the bottom right of the Chromebook sign-in screen. NOTE: Adjust these settings before signing in to your Chromebook. Step 2: Click the Accessibility button near the top right of that options area. Step 3: You will see the list of Accessibility Settings you can turn on and off.
Can you use a regular keyboard with a Chromebook?
To connect a USB keyboard or mouse to your Chromebook, you just need to locate the USB port on the side of your computer and insert the USB connector for your device in the port. Your USB connector can only go in one way, so don't force it.
Luckily, just about every keyboard will work with ChromeOS, so if you've just set up your new Chromebook and want a better typing experience, you have plenty of options.
- Select the taskbar in the lower-right corner of the desktop, then select the Settings gear to open the Chromebook settings in the Chrome browser.
- Select Device from the left menu pane, then select Keyboard.
- From here, you can change the function of certain keys.
Turn off tablet or sign out: Press and hold the Power button until you see a menu to Power off or Sign out. Turn off display: Quickly tap the Power button and release. Use the on-screen keyboard: Tap any text box to show the on-screen keyboard.
- Turn off your Chromebook.
- Press and hold Refresh and tap Power .
- When your Chromebook starts up, release Refresh .
- Choose the time in the lower right corner.
- Choose “Settings.”
- Go to the bottom and choose “Advanced.”
- Choose “Manage accessibility features” from the “Accessibility” section.
- Under “Keyboard” section, you'll find “Sticky Key” option.
- You can select to turn it on or off.
Step 1: Press these two keys – Win and R to open the Run box. Step 2: Input ms-settings:tabletmode in the box and press Enter. Step 3: In the Table mode window, choose Use desktop mode from the When I sign in section. Step 4: After that, restart your computer and see if the PC can boot up directly to the desktop mode.
Fix touchscreen problems
Wipe off any dust or dirt on your touchscreen. Reset your Chromebook hardware. Reset your Chromebook to factory settings.
By default, your computer automatically turns on Tablet mode when it detects the notebook in your hand, even if you don't wish to enable it.
Make sure the touchscreen isn't off. Chromebooks have the option to toggle the touchscreen on and off. If you accidentally toggled this setting, the touchscreen will stop working until you toggle it back on. To activate the Chromebook touchscreen toggle, press Search + Shift + T.
How do I turn off tablet mode on my keyboard?
Press the Windows key + A to launch Action Center. Click the Tablet Mode quick action tile. Manually turn the tablet mode on or off.
- Tap Windows Start to open the Start menu.
- Open Settings. ...
- Tap System.
- Click Tablet.
- Open the When I sign in drop-down menu and change the setting to Never use tablet mode.
To remove all data from your phone, you can reset your phone to factory settings. Factory resets are also called “formatting” or “hard resets.”
ALERT: Back up your files before you proceed. Doing a hard reset of the Chromebook will erase all data and settings on the device, including all files, documents, and personal settings that you have configured. So make sure you do a complete backup before you proceed with a hard reset or powerwash of your Chromebook.
Some of the reasons a keyboard might be unresponsive include: The computer is frozen: If the computer or an app is frozen or locked up, you won't be able to type. The keyboard is disconnected: The keyboard may have been unplugged, ran out of batteries, or the wireless connection may have been disrupted.
Restart the PC
Your keyboard doesn't type since the keyboard or the system you are running gets stuck somehow. You can try restarting it since a simple restart can fix some issues. If you are using Windows 10/11, go to the Start button, press the power icon, and choose Restart to reboot the PC.
Press and hold the Refresh + Power buttons for 10 seconds. Release the Refresh key first and let go of the Power button when your Chromebook starts up.