Like a footrest or a seat cushion, an ergonomic keyboard is something you might not know you need until you use one. But if you do a lot of typing and have concerns about your posture or suffer from arm, wrist, or shoulder pain, you might want to upgrade to an ergonomic keyboard. After researching and testing the top ergonomic keyboards, all of which are designed to reduce strain and keep your arms in a more natural position, we recommend the Kinesis Freestyle Edge RGB. It has all the important ergonomic elements we look for, and it’s also just satisfying to type on.
Our pick
This mechanical keyboard is comfortable to type on and meets all of our ergonomic criteria: It’s a fully split keyboard, it has a flat slope, it can tent, it lacks a number pad, and it lets you program it for further customizability.
| Type: | Fully split | Wrist rest: | Detachable |
| Tenting angles: | 5, 10, 15 degrees | Slope: | 0 degrees |
| Connection: | Wired | Programmable: | Yes |
The Kinesis Freestyle Edge RGB is the best option due to its fully split design, its responsive Cherry MX mechanical keys, its zero-degree slope and low profile, its programmability, and the optional ability to tent the keyboard to 5, 10, or 15 degrees. You can position the halves of the keyboard as close together or as far apart as you’d like in order to reduce shoulder strain and neck tension. With the recommended Lift Kit accessory, you can also tent each half (raise the inner edges of the keyboard halves) to keep your wrists at a neutral angle. Although getting used to typing on a fully split keyboard could take a bit of time—at least a few days, if not weeks—the Freestyle Edge RGB was the easiest for us to get comfortable with thanks to its standard, familiar key layout. And if you’d like to remap keys for a different layout, you can do so in just a couple of clicks.
Upgrade pick
This fully split mechanical keyboard can angle in any position to accommodate a wide range of body types and ergonomic needs, though its layout and its blank modifier keys take some getting used to.
| Type: | Fully split | Wrist rest: | Fully detached, optional $30 add-on |
| Tenting angle: | Up to 20 degrees | Slope: | Up to -15 degrees |
| Connection: | Wired | Programmable: | Yes |
If you want the most adjustable and customizable ergonomic keyboard and don’t mind paying more and dealing with a more difficult learning curve, we recommend the ErgoDox EZ. This is the ergonomic keyboard for tinkerers: You can adjust the legs on the fully split keyboard halves to any tented and negatively tilted angle, you have your choice of 12 switch types, the keycaps and switches are easily replaceable, and the open-source firmware lets you remap keys and modify the backlight to your liking. But the ErgoDox EZ’s unusual layout and blank modifier keys take time to learn, so it’s not for folks who just want to plug in their keyboard and start typing. The ErgoDox EZ is for people who want their keyboard to fit and feel just so—and are willing to put the time and effort into relearning how to type.
