Why Is the Keyboard QWERTY (and Not in Alphabetical Order)?
Keyboards use the QWERTY layout because it was designed for one of the first successful typewriters in the 1870s. The letters were mixed up on purpose so the typewriter's metal arms would jam less, and the layout stuck around ever since.
Q-W-E-R-T-Y: the first six letters on the top row give the layout its name!
The typewriter that started it all
In the late 1860s and early 1870s, a newspaper editor and inventor named Christopher Latham Sholes, with partners Carlos Glidden and Samuel Soule, built a typewriter in Milwaukee. Early versions had keys in alphabetical order, in two rows like a piano.
Each key on those machines swung a metal arm (a typebar) up to hit the paper. Type two neighboring arms quickly and they could tangle and jam. Over several years of testing, Sholes moved letters around so that common letter pairs, like T and H, were less likely to collide. In 1873 the gunmaker E. Remington and Sons bought the design, and the Remington No. 1 went on sale in 1874 with a layout very close to the QWERTY we use today.
Was QWERTY made to slow typists down?
That is a popular myth. Sholes wanted to stop jams, not make people slow. Historians have also found that early typewriter users included telegraph operators who copied Morse code messages, and their feedback may explain some odd spots (like why Z, S and E are near each other, letters that are easy to confuse in American Morse code). Most likely, QWERTY came from lots of small changes over time rather than one perfect plan.
Why don't we switch to ABC order now?
Computers do not jam, so the original reason is gone. But by the 1890s, typing schools taught QWERTY, offices bought QWERTY machines and millions of people learned it. Changing everyone is hard, so QWERTY simply stayed. Experts call this "lock-in". And ABC order would not even be faster, because the most common letters would end up in awkward places.
Other layouts
- Dvorak (1936): August Dvorak put the most-used letters (the vowels and D H T N S) on the home row. Some fans love it, but few people switch.
- AZERTY: used in France and Belgium. A and Q, and Z and W, swap places.
- QWERTZ: used in Germany and Central Europe, where Z is a common letter, so Z and Y swap.
- Colemak (2006): a modern layout that keeps shortcuts like Ctrl + C and V in the same spots.
Fun QWERTY fact
You can type the word TYPEWRITER using only the top row of letters. Try it in typing practice!
Fun fact
"Typewriter" is one of the longest common English words you can type using only the top letter row.
FAQ
Why are keyboard letters not in alphabetical order?
Because the layout comes from 1870s typewriters, where letters were arranged to reduce jams. Everyone learned that layout, so computers kept it.
Who invented the QWERTY keyboard?
Christopher Latham Sholes, with Carlos Glidden and Samuel Soule. Remington began selling it in 1874.
Was QWERTY designed to slow typists down?
No. It was designed to reduce jams in early typewriters, which actually helped people type faster without stopping.
Is there a faster keyboard layout?
Layouts like Dvorak and Colemak put common letters on the home row. Some typists find them faster, but QWERTY is fine for kids and is what schools use.