Keyboard types the wrong letters
My keyboard types symbols or the wrong letters instead of what I press. How do I fix it?
Written by The CommonFixes team · fact checked by CommonFixes review desk
Last updated
Short answer
The computer is set to a different keyboard layout than the one printed on your keys, or the number pad overlay is switched on. The quickest thing to try first: switch the language layout back — On Windows press the Windows key and the space bar to cycle layouts until the keys match. On a Mac click the flag or globe in the menu bar and pick your layout. Most people are done in about 5 minutes.
Full walkthrough below: 4 steps for Windows and Mac, rated easy.
Sounds like this
- •Quotation marks appear as other symbols
- •At sign and double quote swapped
- •Numbers instead of letters
Why it happens
The computer is set to a different keyboard layout than the one printed on your keys, or the number pad overlay is switched on.
Work through these in order
0% done- 1
Switch the language layout back
On Windows press the Windows key and the space bar to cycle layouts until the keys match. On a Mac click the flag or globe in the menu bar and pick your layout.
- 2
Remove layouts you never use
On Windows open Settings, Time and language, Language and region, then remove the extra keyboard so it cannot be selected by accident again.
- 3
Turn off the number overlay
On a laptop without a separate number pad, press Num Lock, or hold the Fn key and press Num Lock, if letters on the right side type digits.
- 4
Rule out sticky keys and dirt
Turn the laptop off, hold it upside down, and brush the keys. If one key repeats or sticks, a crumb underneath is usually the reason.
If none of that worked
If the wrong letters continue in the sign in screen too, the keyboard itself is faulty. A plug in keyboard confirms this in seconds.
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Who wrote this and how we checked it
The CommonFixes team
Writer and researcher
We are a small group of people who spend our days repairing laptops and desktops for family, friends and small offices. Every guide here starts with a problem someone actually brought to us, and we only write down the steps that put the machine right.
- Everyday repairs
- Windows and Mac
- Plain language
CommonFixes review desk
Technical editor
Before a guide goes live, a second person walks through it on a real machine and checks each instruction against the maker's own support pages. Anything we cannot confirm is removed rather than guessed at.
- Fact checking
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This guide was last updated on 10 August 2026. If a step no longer matches what you see on screen, tell us on the contact page and we will test it again.
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