Mac keyboard test
The key map opens with Mac labels — Command, Option, Control, Delete and Return. Press each key on your MacBook or Magic Keyboard and watch it turn green when the press and release reach the browser.
Ready: press any key. Tab, Space, arrows and F-keys still do their usual job until you start full capture.
This looks like a touch device. An on-screen keyboard cannot show whether physical keys work: connect a USB or Bluetooth keyboard and test that instead.
- Keys tested
- 0
- Held now
- —
- Last key
- —
Keys outside this map: none
Event log (last 60 events)
| ms | event | key | code | location | repeat | note |
|---|
How to test a Mac keyboard
- Choose ANSI for US-style Mac keyboards or ISO for UK and European ones (tall Return key and an extra key beside left Shift).
- Press every key once, slowly. Keys turn orange while held and green after release.
- Press Start full capture to test keys Safari or Chrome normally use, such as Tab, Space and the arrows. Press Esc twice to stop.
- MacBooks have no numeric keypad: it is hidden on this page, and you can switch it on for a full-size Magic Keyboard.
Mac-specific behaviour
- Command (⌘) combinations: while Command is held, macOS does not report the release of other keys to web pages. The test therefore marks those keys as released when you let go of Command — test letters on their own first.
- fn / Globe: handled by the keyboard and macOS, so no website can detect it. The same applies to brightness, Mission Control, Spotlight and media keys on the top row, unless you set Use F1, F2, etc. keys as standard function keys in System Settings → Keyboard.
- Caps Lock: macOS reports it as a toggle, and has a short built-in delay to prevent accidental presses. A quick tap may not register — press it firmly.
- Touch ID and the Touch Bar are not keys for the browser and cannot be tested here.
- Labels: Chrome and Edge show the characters of your active input source on the map; Safari shows US labels. The physical position is what matters.
If keys do not respond
- Check System Settings → Accessibility → Keyboard: Slow Keys and Sticky Keys change how presses are reported.
- For a Magic Keyboard, charge it and re-pair it in System Settings → Bluetooth, or test it with the cable.
- Dust under MacBook keys is a common cause of keys that stick or repeat. Apple's support pages describe cleaning with compressed air for the affected models.
- Test an external keyboard as well: if it works, the fault is in the built-in keyboard rather than macOS.
Questions
Why does the fn key never light up?
On Mac keyboards fn (or the Globe key) is processed inside the keyboard and by macOS to change what other keys do. It is never sent to web pages, so no browser test can detect it.
Can I test a Windows keyboard on a Mac?
Yes. Switch the key labels to Windows / Linux. The Windows key reaches macOS as Command and Alt as Option, which is why the map shows them in those positions.
Related tests
- Keyboard testPress every key and see which ones register, with ANSI, ISO and Mac layouts.
- Chatter testFind keys that type twice: each press timed, repeats too fast for a finger flagged.
- Ghosting testHold several keys at once and see which combinations your keyboard can report.
- Numpad testPress every key on the numeric keypad and see whether it registers, with the Num Lock state shown.
- Keycode testerSee the key, code, keyCode, location, modifiers and repeat flag the browser reports for any key.
- Spacebar speed testSee how many times you can press the spacebar in 5 to 60 seconds; held keys do not count.