How to Type in Japanese on Your Phone and Computer
Typing in Japanese sounds like it should need a special keyboard with thousands of keys. It doesn’t. Your phone and computer already include a Japanese input method: you type the sounds, and the software offers hiragana, katakana and kanji for you to choose from. Setting it up takes a few minutes, and it is one of the best things you can do for your Japanese.
How Japanese input works
Japanese is typed through an input method editor, or IME. On a normal keyboard you type in romaji, and the IME turns it into kana as you go: typing ka gives か, and sushi gives すし. Press the space bar and the IME suggests conversions, such as 寿司 or スシ. Press Enter to accept.
This means you don’t need to know how to write a kanji by hand to type it. You do need to know its reading, and to recognise the right one in the list, which is excellent reading practice.
Setting it up
Menu names change between versions, so use these as a guide and check your device’s help pages if something looks different.
- Windows: in Settings, open the language settings, add Japanese, and make sure the Microsoft IME keyboard is included. Switch between English and Japanese from the taskbar or with a keyboard shortcut.
- Mac: in System Settings, open the keyboard settings, edit the input sources and add Japanese (Romaji). Switch with the input menu or a keyboard shortcut.
- iPhone and iPad: in Settings, go to the keyboard settings and add a Japanese keyboard. Choose Romaji to type on a QWERTY layout, or Kana for the flick keyboard described below.
- Android: most keyboards, including Gboard, let you add Japanese as a language from the keyboard’s settings, with a choice of QWERTY or a 12-key layout.
Romaji typing rules that confuse beginners
| To type | Press | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| ん | nn | A single n works before most consonants, but before a vowel or y it joins the next sound: kinyou gives きにょう, so type kinnyou for きんよう. nn is always safe. |
| を | wo | Pronounced o, but typed wo. |
| Particle は | ha | Pronounced wa, but typed as written. こんにちは ends in ha. |
| Small っ | double the consonant | kitte gives きって. To type it on its own, use xtu or ltu. |
| Small ゃ ゅ ょ | kya, shu, cho | On their own: xya or lya. |
| Long ー | the minus key | For katakana words: ko-hi- gives コーヒー. |
| ぢ and づ | di, du | Rare, but needed for words like つづく (tsuduku). |
Typing follows the kana spelling, not the sound. That makes typing a quiet test of whether you really know how a word is written, which is why it helps your reading and writing so much.
Choosing the right kanji
Many words share a reading. Type kaeru and you might see 帰る (“go home”), 変える (“change”) and 蛙 (“frog”). Some tips:
- Type whole phrases, not single words. The IME uses context, so ieni kaeru is more likely to give 家に帰る.
- Press space again to scroll through options. Many IMEs show a short explanation of each candidate.
- Use the arrow keys to change where a phrase is split if the IME groups the sounds wrongly.
- Leave it in hiragana if you’re unsure. Many everyday words are commonly written in kana anyway, and a wrong kanji is more confusing than none.
The flick keyboard on phones
Most people in Japan type on their phones with the 12-key flick keyboard. Each key holds one row of the kana chart: tap か for ka, or flick left, up, right or down for ki, ku, ke and ko. It feels slow for a day or two, then becomes much faster than romaji on a small screen. It also drills the kana chart into your memory, so it is worth trying once you can read hiragana. If you’re not there yet, start with our guide to learning hiragana and katakana.
Shortcuts worth knowing
- Katakana: on Windows, press F7 after typing to convert to full-width katakana. On a Mac, Control+K does the same in many apps.
- Back to romaji: F10 on Windows gives the letters you typed, useful when you forget to switch input modes.
- Your own words: both systems let you add names and phrases to a user dictionary, handy for your company name or your own name in katakana.
Put it to use
Switch your phone’s keyboard to Japanese and use it for something small every day: a shopping list, a search, a message to a language partner or your tutor. Writing short messages between lessons is one of the easiest ways to make new words stick, and your tutor can correct the ones that come out wrong.