If you’re a student or have a job that requires the frequent use of a computer, having good typing skills are a great asset. However, these days many people seem to struggle with doing this properly. Many of us may even find it easier to type on a mobile device than on a standard computer keyboard.
If you’re tired of having to look at the keys when typing on a computer, or want to improve your speed and efficiency, we have a solution for you. We’ll be telling you about twelve of the best online tools you can use to advance your typing abilities, and include information such as:
Before we get into the tools we recommend, let’s quickly go over some of the amazing benefits of improving your typing skills.
Reasons you should improve your typing
- Saves time– when you improve your accuracy and efficiency, you’ll save time with your improved speed.
- Can make you more appealing to potential employers– an employer might be more likely to hire you if you’re better at typing than someone else who is equally as qualified.
- Improve accuracy and make less mistakes– with practice, you’ll improve your efficiency and accuracy.
- Will help improve skills across all devices, including touch screen typing– practicing on a computer keyboard may also make it easier for you to do it on your mobile device’s keyboard, as the letters are laid out in the same way.
These are just a handful of reasons to work towards improving your typing. Next, we’re going to tell you about the twelve tools we’d recommend using.
Top 12 online typing tools
1. Typesy
First on our list is Typesy. This is a popular typing tutoring software that has instructional videos and practice exercises to help you learn to improve your typing. The software is compatible with PC, Mac, and iPad, so no matter what device you have you can use Typesy. Their exercises are created by experts, so it’s like having a professional instructor at home.
Typesy can help you improve your typing and reduce repetitive strain injuries with the use of proper techniques. You can track your progress and improvement over time. If you want to use it on different devices, you can log into your account on another device and pick up where you left off.
2. TypeFu
Next up is TypeFu. TypeFu is an app for Windows and Mac computers. The goal of this app is to help you get faster at typing. They claim that with the help of this app, you’ll be able to double or triple your speed, learn to type more accurately, and keep focused on your screen without having to constantly look at your hands to see what keys you’re hitting.
The TypeFu app is appropriate for use by typists of all skill levels. It can help you improve your average typing skills, or help introduce a beginner and train them with the proper techniques. The exercises on the app are engaging and informative, as you can practice with famous quotes and proverbs.
3. UltraKey
Another great software for improving your typing is UltraKey. UltraKey gives you demonstrations when introducing new skills, and gets increasingly more advanced as your skills improve over time. The software is compatible with Mac and Windows, and has different editions for North America, UK, and Australia-New Zealand.
4. Rapid Typing
Next is Rapid Typing. This is a free software that doesn’t require any registration process, has no ads, and no limits on usage. Rapid Typing offers courses from beginner level to expert. The courses are available in many languages, including English, French, Arabic, Russian, and more.
To assist in your learning of techniques and finger placement, Rapid Typing shows virtual keyboards with color coded keys to help you differentiate different zones of the keyboard and know which fingers are supposed to tap which keys. Similar to Typesy, this software allows you to track your progress to see how you improve over time when using it.
5. The Typing Cat
Another site that can help you better your typing and become more productive is The Typing Cat. They offer courses, games, and tests. This site can help you learn how to properly touch type, increase your speed and/or accuracy, and more.
Their courses range from basic to advanced, and you can choose the kind of examples you want to practice typing with – including coding examples in HTML5 or CSS3. The Typing Cat is available for a few different keyboard layouts, like Qwerty, Dvorak, Colemak, and Workman.
6. Typing Scout
Typing Scout is a typing trainer website that allows you to improve your keyboard skills by playing games. This one is also great if you’re a teacher, as you can register your school and make it easy for your students to sign in and learn, and you can track their progress.
If you’re a teacher, you can assign tests and exercises for your students and store them in Typing Scout. Your students can practice their typing outside of their assigned exercises with fun games like “Typetris,” a version of the popular game Tetris.
7. Typing Trainer
Next on our list is Typing Trainer. This website is completely free to use, and makes it fun and easy to make your typing better. There are over 20 free lessons, tests, and lots of awesome games to help you practice. Typing Trainer even has a program called “Typetastic” that’s designed to help children learn to key properly. You can boost your keyboard skills and test your abilities with Typing Trainer.
8. Ratatype
Ratatype is a great typing tutor website for individuals, groups, and teachers. Learn valuable keyboard skills to help yourself be more efficient in your work. When you complete the Ratatype program, you can receive a typing certificate that might impress your friends and potential employers.
Invite your friends or classmates to join a Ratatype group so you can practice together and have friendly competitions to see who can type the fastest or make the fewest mistakes.
9. PowerTyping.com
PowerTyping is another awesome, free site to use to learn keyboard skills or improve your existing abilities. On this website, you’ll find lessons, tests, games, and practice exercises. There are PowerTyping lessons on the Qwerty keyboard, Dvorak keyboard, and even the Dvorak keyboard for programming. Each of these courses has around seven lessons, and can help you work towards your goals of increasing your speed.
PowerTyping has cool features like progress tracking and music to help you learn to type rhythmically. There are also several typing tests to see how you’re doing in terms of your speed in words per minute (WPM), and even tests for mobile devices to see how fast you can text in comparison to how you key on a computer.
10. TypingClub
Next up we have TypingClub. This web-based typing tutor has over 23 million users! It’s totally free, and doesn’t even require registration to try out their lessons. If you want to register for a free account, this will give you the ability to keep track of what lessons you’ve completed and your progress to see how you’ve improved throughout the process of you using the site.
TypingClub is a partner of Google for Education, and has lots of cool features that make it good to use. There are different levels, badges, and other motivational tools to encourage you to keep practicing, and the game-like practice tools make it a fun way to learn.
11. Key Hero
Another great option is KeyHero.com. The aim of this site is to help its users type as fast as they can think. It can slow you down a lot when you have to look at your fingers on the keyboard while you’re typing to make sure you’re hitting the right keys, and making a mistake can slow you down even more.
Start by taking their typing test to see what your current WPM speed is. As you do more practicing, Key Hero will keep track of your WPM improvement and rate of accuracy.
12. Typing.com
Lastly, we have Typing.com. This site is great for schools, teachers, and individuals who want to learn at home. There are typing exercises appropriate for all ages, and over 14 million people already use the service. You can take one of their timed tests and receive a printable certificate showing your speed in WPM and your percentage of accuracy.
Outside of the lessons offered by Typing.com, you can play their fun games to reinforce what you’ve learned. Have a look at the virtual keyboard on your screen to see what fingers you should be using for each key, and help you avoid looking at your hands while you type.
These twelve websites are our top recommendations for the best online typing tutors to check out if you’re looking to learn to type online. Now that we’ve told you a little about each of them, we’re going to give you a few pointers to help you get started.
4 helpful typing tips
1. Learn to use your home keys.
Proper hand placement and using the correct finger to hit the keys on your keyboard will help you increase your speed and accuracy, as well as reduce the risk of repetitive strain injuries from improper techniques.
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2. Take your time and do your best to be accurate.
When you’re working on improving your typing, do your best to be as accurate as possible, and you can work on increasing your speed as you continue to practice. Being more accurate is better than rushing and making more mistakes. All the sites we’ve recommended can teach you how to improve your typing speed.
3. Take typing tests periodically to track your progress.
When you’re starting on a journey to improve your keyboard skills, first take a test to see how many words you can type per minute. Take another test every so often to see how you’re improving.
4. Get certification for your typing abilities.
When you’re happy with your typing speed and accuracy, we’d recommend participating in an examination or course that will give you a certificate that proves you’ve demonstrated wonderful keyboard skills. Having a certificate is better than simply saying “I can type [insert number] words per minute.”
That does it for our guide to the best typing tutor online services. We hope one or more of them helps you along with improving your skills. Check out our other online learning resources if you’d like to improve other useful skills or learn something new.
