Chinese Keyboard Online
Type in Chinese Online using the virtual keyboard below and then copy it to your clipboard.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this a full Chinese keyboard?
This is a keyboard of common, useful Chinese characters (Hanzi). Real Chinese typing doesn't involve a keyboard with thousands of keys. Instead, it uses an input method editor (IME).
How do people actually type in Chinese?
The most common method is using a Pinyin IME. You type the phonetic sound of a character using English letters (e.g., 'ni hao'), and a list of matching characters appears. You then select the correct one (e.g., 你好).
What is Pinyin?
Pinyin is the official system for romanizing Chinese characters, meaning it represents their sounds using the Latin alphabet. It's the primary way learners and native speakers input characters on a standard QWERTY keyboard.
Does this keyboard support phonetic typing?
No, this specific tool is a simple character-picker. For a full phonetic typing experience, you would need to enable a Chinese (Pinyin) IME in your computer or phone's settings.
What is the difference between Traditional and Simplified characters?
Simplified characters were introduced in mainland China in the 20th century to increase literacy. They have fewer strokes. Traditional characters are still used in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau. For example, 'love' is '爱' (Simplified) and '愛' (Traditional).
What do the characters on this keyboard mean?
The characters provided are some of the most common and fundamental in the Chinese language. They include greetings like '你好' (nǐ hǎo - hello), numbers, and basic words like '我' (wǒ - I/me).
Are there tones in Chinese?
Yes, Mandarin Chinese is a tonal language with four main tones (plus a neutral one). The same syllable with a different tone can have a completely different meaning. For example, 'mā' (mother) vs. 'mǎ' (horse).
How can I use this tool for learning?
This is a great tool for familiarizing yourself with the appearance of some basic but important characters. You can click on them to see them up close and practice writing them.
Can I use these characters on social media?
Yes! Chinese characters are part of the Unicode standard and can be copied and pasted into almost any application, website, or social media platform.
How many Chinese characters are there in total?
There are over 50,000 characters in total, but you only need to know around 2,000-3,000 to be able to read most everyday newspapers and websites.
What are radicals?
Radicals are graphical components that many Chinese characters are made of. Recognizing common radicals (like the 'water' radical 氵 or the 'person' radical 亻) can help you guess the meaning or pronunciation of new characters.
Why doesn't this keyboard have all the characters I need?
Providing all characters on a single keyboard would be impossible. This tool is designed to provide quick access to a few essential characters for users who don't have a Chinese IME installed.
Is Chinese hard to learn?
The grammar is often considered simpler than many European languages (no verb conjugations!). The main challenge is memorizing the characters and mastering the tones. It's a journey, but a rewarding one!
Does this keyboard work for Cantonese?
Cantonese and Mandarin are different spoken languages, but they share the same traditional written character set. So while the pronunciation is different, you can use these characters to write in a formal Cantonese context.
How do I say 'thank you' in Chinese?
One of the characters on our keyboard is '谢谢' (xièxie), which is the most common way to say 'thank you' in Mandarin Chinese.