Google Keyboard
Ranked 8 of 12 keyboard apps by recommenders
People recommend it for its functionality, swipe typing and preference over the iOS keyboard. Critics say autocorrect has slipped and it sometimes changes behaviour without notice.
People recommend it for its functionality, swipe typing and preference over the iOS keyboard. Critics say autocorrect has slipped and it sometimes changes behaviour without notice.
19 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 11
- criticize it
- 8
- approval share
- 58%
Recommended in 7 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 11 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 1.3 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
- Recommended in 7 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Preferred over iOS and other keyboards
“it was such a breath of fresh air when it actually accepted the keys”
Comment from 14 Sep 2026 in “iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS 27” “I prefer the Android keyboard in every single way”
Comment from 13 Feb 2026 in “Apple, fix my keyboard before the timer ends or I'm leaving iPhone” “I find it's a lot better.”
Comment from 13 Feb 2026 in “Apple, fix my keyboard before the timer ends or I'm leaving iPhone” - Comment from 11 Dec 2025 in “iPhone Typos? It's Not Just You – The iOS Keyboard Is Broken [video]”
Strong functionality and swipe typing
“The privacy it offers is a nice touch, and its functionality unmatched.”
Comment from 27 Jan 2026 in “JuiceSSH – Give me my pro features back” “enable swipe typing, it works really well”
Comment from 20 Apr 2026 in “I'm never buying another Kindle, and neither should you”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Autocorrect quality has declined
“Both Apple and Android have regressed in quality and it's only possible because of a duopoly.”
Comment from 13 Feb 2026 in “Apple, fix my keyboard before the timer ends or I'm leaving iPhone” “Every year or two, Google Keyboard on Android makes it its purpose to screw up”
Comment from 6 Apr 2026 in “Show HN: YouTube search barely works, I made a search form with advanced filters” “the android autocorrect got so much worse at some point”
Comment from 11 Dec 2025 in “iPhone Typos? It's Not Just You – The iOS Keyboard Is Broken [video]” Not among the best keyboards
“The default Android one is decent, but not among the best.”
Comment from 23 Sep 2026 in “Minimal Phone 2” “Google Keyboard came much later but lacked some of the smoothing and tappiness of the Apple one”
Comment from 16 Oct 2026 in “Apple routed a graphite pipe through the iPhone Duo's hinge to dissipate heat” Features change without notice
“Every year or two, Google Keyboard on Android makes it its purpose to screw up”
Comment from 6 Apr 2026 in “Show HN: YouTube search barely works, I made a search form with advanced filters” “Google Keyboard used to do this, but mysteriously doesn't do it anymore.”
Comment from 23 Jun 2026 in “FUTO Swipe – A new swipe typing model”
Other keyboard apps people recommend
The four most recommended other keyboard apps, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gboard | 59 | 43 | 58% | 10 | — | — |
| FUTO Keyboard | 51 | 22 | 70% | 12 | 1 yr4 owners | Approved |
| FUTO Swipe | 40 | 18 | 69% | 1 | — | — |
| iOS keyboard | 28 | 182 | 13% | 8 | 10 yrs9 owners | — |
| Google KeyboardThis page | 11 | 8 | 58% | 7 | — | — |
What people said
All 19 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Google Keyboard came much later but lacked some of the smoothing and tappiness of the Apple one”
“The default Android one is decent, but not among the best.”
“it was such a breath of fresh air when it actually accepted the keys”
“Why my Google Keyboard started 500Mb+ Cache and 200Mb+ of UserData.”
“requirement in their app for me to have Google Keyboard installed and active as my primary keyboard”
“Google Keyboard has somewhat improved here”
“Google Keyboard used to do this, but mysteriously doesn't do it anymore.”
“especially when writing in two languages”
“enable swipe typing, it works really well”
“Every year or two, Google Keyboard on Android makes it its purpose to screw up”
“I prefer the Android keyboard in every single way”
“I find it's a lot better.”
“Both Apple and Android have regressed in quality and it's only possible because of a duopoly.”
“Going to Android with the Android Keyboard drives me nuts.”
“The privacy it offers is a nice touch, and its functionality unmatched.”
“On Android you have this and you can tune how long a long-press is. It's amazing”
“the android autocorrect got so much worse at some point”
“how much I miss the Android keyboard”
“Installing the Google keyboard has been step #1 on every new iOS device of mine for the last decade.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.