Every mechanical keyboard argument eventually comes down to the switch. It sets how hard you press, how far the key travels, what you feel when the letter registers and what your desk sounds like at 80 WPM. Luckily, the whole field comes down to three types and a handful of numbers. Once you know them, you can read a switch spec sheet and guess how it will feel before you ever touch it.
How a key switch works
Most mechanical switches share the same basic parts. A plastic housing in two halves holds everything together. Inside sits a stem, the part your keycap plugs into, resting on a coiled metal spring. When you press the key, the stem slides down and pushes apart (or lets close) a pair of metal contact leaves. The circuit closes, the keyboard sends the letter. Let go and the spring pushes the stem back up.
That is the basic mechanism. Everything that makes one switch feel different from another comes from small changes to those parts:
- The stem shape decides whether there is a bump on the way down. A smooth stem gives a linear feel; a stem with a raised "leg" that rubs past the contact leaf gives a tactile bump.
- The spring decides how heavy the key is and how that weight changes through the press. Longer springs and two-stage springs change the feel near the bottom.
- The housing material (nylon, polycarbonate, POM and blends) changes the pitch and depth of the sound.
- Lubrication and tolerances decide whether the press feels smooth or scratchy, and whether the key wobbles.
Not every switch uses metal contacts. Topre switches use a rubber dome over a conical spring and read the press by measuring capacitance. Hall effect and optical switches read the stem position with magnets or light. The feel categories below still apply to all of them.
Actuation, bottom-out and why the numbers matter
Switch specs throw around a few terms, and each one tells you something about how the key will feel.
| Term | What it means | Typical value (Cherry MX style) |
|---|---|---|
| Actuation point | How far down the key registers | About 2 mm |
| Total travel | How far the key can move before it stops | About 4 mm |
| Actuation force | How hard you press to reach the actuation point | Roughly 45 to 60 g (often written in cN) |
| Bottom-out force | Force at the very bottom of the travel | Usually 10 to 20 g more than actuation |
| Tactile peak | Force at the top of the bump, on tactile switches | Often a little above actuation force |
The interesting part is the gap. The key registers at about half its travel, so the second half of every press is wasted motion. Bottoming out means driving the key all the way down until the stem hits the housing, and most beginners do it on every stroke. It is louder, it sends a small jolt back into the finger, and it costs a little time on the way back up.
You do not need to train yourself to float above the bottom perfectly. Plenty of fast typists bottom out. But a lighter, more even touch tends to come with speed anyway, and a switch with a clear tactile bump makes it easier to feel where the key has already done its job.
A quick self-test
Type a 60-second test and listen. If every key ends in a hard clack, you are bottoming out. Try one more run pressing just hard enough to hear the letter appear. Most people find their accuracy holds and their hands feel looser. It takes a few weeks to stick, so do not force it.
Linear vs tactile vs clicky
This is the choice that matters most, and it is mostly about taste. All three can be fast.
Linear
Straight down, straight up, nothing in between. Linears feel smooth and quick, which is why gamers like them: rapid repeated presses do not have to push through a bump. For typing, the downside is that there is no signal telling you the key has registered, so many people bottom out harder on linears. If you like a light, fluid feel and do not mind the lack of feedback, a smooth linear is lovely to type on.
Tactile
A bump partway down tells your finger "that one counted". Good tactiles put the bump right around the actuation point. Many touch typists prefer them, because the bump gives a natural cue to ease off. Bump size varies a lot: a Cherry MX Brown is so gentle that some people can barely feel it, while a Holy Panda has a big rounded bump you cannot miss.
Clicky
A tactile bump plus a deliberate click, made by a separate piece inside the switch (a click jacket on Cherry MX Blue, a click bar on Kailh Box switches). The feedback is unmistakable and very satisfying when you are alone. In a shared room, on a video call or anywhere near a sleeping person, it is a problem. The click can also happen slightly out of step with actuation on some designs, which bothers a few typists.
If you have never used a mechanical keyboard, a light tactile is the safest first pick. It is quiet enough for most offices and gives you feedback while you work out what you like.
Popular switches by family
These are the switches people mention most, grouped by type. Force figures vary between production runs and versions, so treat the descriptions as a guide to feel rather than a spec sheet.
Linears
- Cherry MX Red. The classic light linear. Light and quick, slightly scratchy compared with modern linears, and the reference point everyone else is measured against.
- Cherry MX Black. The heavy linear. Noticeably stiffer than Red. Some typists love the weight because it cuts down accidental presses; others find it tiring in long sessions.
- NK Cream (NovelKeys). Housing and stem are both POM, a self-lubricating plastic. They are known for feeling scratchy when new and smoothing out with use. The sound is deep and creamy, hence the name.
- Gateron Ink (Black Ink, Red Ink). Smoked translucent housings, very smooth out of the box, with a full, slightly deeper sound. Black Ink is the heavier one; Red Ink is lighter.
- Gateron Alpaca and Zeal Tealios. Popular enthusiast linears, usually sold pre-lubed or lubed by owners, with a rounded, muted bottom-out.
Tactiles
- Cherry MX Brown. The most common tactile in the world. The bump is mild, which makes it a good bridge from laptop keys. Enthusiasts often call it "linear with sand in it", which is unfair but explains why some people want more.
- Holy Panda. Originally a community mashup of a Halo stem in a Panda housing, now made as a production switch. A large, rounded bump right at the top of the press. If you want to know what "strongly tactile" means, this is the one to try.
- Everglide Oreo and Crystal Purple. Enthusiast tactiles with a crisp, defined bump and a punchy sound.
- Topre. A rubber dome with a conical spring underneath, sensed by capacitance rather than metal contacts. The bump is rounded and sits right at the top, and the sound is a soft, low "thock". Found on Realforce and HHKB keyboards. Not compatible with standard MX keycaps on most boards.
Clickies
- Cherry MX Blue. The famous clicky. Sharp, high click, moderate weight. Loved by many, banned from many offices.
- Kailh Box Navy. A heavy clicky with a thick click bar. Louder and deeper than MX Blue, with a strong snap. For people who want to feel every key.
- Alps (SKCM Blue Alps). Alps switches came on many keyboards of the 1980s and 1990s, including several Apple models. They use a flat, rectangular stem, so they need Alps-compatible keycaps. Blue Alps have a sharp, distinctive click that some people still consider the best clicky ever made. Matias makes a modern Alps-style switch if you want the feel without hunting vintage boards.
- Buckling spring. The IBM Model M mechanism. A long spring buckles sideways under your finger and flips a hammer that hits the sensor, producing a loud, metallic, very physical click. Unicomp still makes keyboards with it. It is heavy and loud, and the people who like it really like it.
The best switches for typing
We get asked this a lot. For long typing sessions, most people end up happiest with something in the middle of the weight range, roughly 45 to 60 g actuation, with either a smooth linear or a light-to-medium tactile. Very heavy switches tire your hands over an hour of writing. Very light ones (35 g and under) cause stray letters when a finger rests a little too heavily.
Some practical picks:
- For a first mechanical keyboard: a light tactile, or a Brown-style switch if you want quiet.
- If you bottom out hard and want to stop: a strongly tactile switch like a Holy Panda gives you a clear cue to lift.
- If you like speed and smoothness: a lubed linear like an NK Cream or a Gateron Ink.
- If you work in a shared space: avoid clickies. Linears with dampened housings, or Topre, are the quietest of the lot.
Will any of this raise your WPM? A little at best. Your speed comes from technique, accuracy and practice (our guide on how to type faster covers what moves the number). What a good switch does is make typing pleasant enough that you do more of it, and comfortable enough that you can keep going. If your hands or wrists ache, look at your setup first: typing ergonomics matters far more than switch choice, and pain that sticks around is worth seeing a professional about.
Keycaps: ABS vs PBT and what they do to sound
The keycap is the part you touch, and its material changes both feel and sound.
| ABS | PBT | |
|---|---|---|
| Texture | Smooth, slightly glossy | Fine, dry texture |
| Over time | Develops shine where fingers rest | Resists shine much longer |
| Typical thickness | Often thinner on stock boards | Often thicker |
| Sound | Brighter, higher pitched | Lower, more muted |
| Legends | Doubleshot ABS gives very sharp, colourful legends | Dye-sublimated legends last well, colour range is narrower |
The sound difference is real but often overstated. Thickness, the keycap profile (tall sculpted profiles sound deeper than flat ones), the plate, the case and whatever is under the board all shift the sound as much as the plastic. A thick ABS set can sound deeper than a thin PBT one. And none of it affects speed. Pick the caps you like looking at and touching.
Hear switches before you buy
Reading about sound only goes so far. Switch testers (small boards with a few different switches) are cheap and worth it if you are about to spend real money on a keyboard. Hot-swap keyboards, which let you pull switches out without soldering, make it easy to change your mind later.
You can also hear them right now. Presspace has 25 real recorded switch packs you can type on during any test: open Settings > Sound, pick a pack and start typing. The list covers the switches in this article, including NK Cream, Gateron Black Ink and Red Ink, Holy Panda, Cherry MX Black, Red, Brown and Blue, Topre, SKCM Blue Alps, Kailh Box Navy and buckling spring. For the four Cherry MX switches there are separate ABS and PBT keycap recordings, so you can hear exactly how much the plastic changes things. Your speakers will colour the sound, but the differences between linear, tactile and clicky come through clearly.
A good way to use it: type a 60-second test on a linear pack, then the same test on a clicky one, and notice which one makes you want to keep going. That is a decent hint about what to buy.
What to do next
If you are shopping, answer three questions before you look at keyboards. Does it need to be quiet? Do you want a bump? How heavy should it feel? That narrows a list of hundreds of switches to a handful. Then try those few, either on a tester or by ear in the typing test with sound turned on.
And if you already own a keyboard you like, the switch is done. Spend the time on practice instead. A week of short daily sessions from our typing practice routine will do more for your speed than any switch upgrade.
Questions people ask
What is the difference between linear, tactile and clicky switches?
A linear switch moves straight down with no bump. A tactile switch has a small bump you feel near the point where the key registers. A clicky switch has that bump plus a separate mechanism that makes an audible click.
What are the best switches for typing?
There is no single best switch, but most people who type a lot settle on either a light tactile switch or a smooth linear in roughly the 45 to 60 gram range. Very heavy switches tire the fingers over long sessions, and very light ones cause more accidental presses.
Do mechanical keyboards make you type faster?
Not by much on their own. Technique, accuracy and practice account for nearly all of your speed. A switch you like can make typing more comfortable and consistent, which helps a little over long sessions.
Are clicky switches bad for offices?
Usually, yes. Clicky switches like Cherry MX Blue or Kailh Box Navy are loud enough to be heard across a room, and on calls. If you share a space, a tactile or linear switch is the polite choice.
Do PBT keycaps sound different from ABS?
Yes, a little. PBT caps are usually thicker and tend to sound lower and more muted, while thinner ABS caps sound brighter. Keycap thickness, profile, the case and the plate change the sound at least as much as the plastic does.
Put it into practice
The test starts on your first keystroke. No sign-up.