Keyboard not working in Windows 11: how to fix it

Applies to: Windows 11 desktops and laptops with a USB, wireless or Bluetooth keyboard, or a built-in laptop keyboard, that stopped typing completely, types only some keys, or types the wrong characters. Windows 10 has the same features, though its Settings pages are laid out differently.

Match your symptom

What you see	Likely cause	Start with
Nothing types anywhere, and the keyboard lights are off	Cable, port, batteries or the keyboard itself	Fix 1, Fix 3
Keys work only if you hold them, or stopped after you held Shift	Filter keys	Fix 2
Shortcuts fire on their own, or Shift seems stuck	Sticky keys	Fix 2
Wireless or Bluetooth keyboard drops out or won’t connect	Batteries, receiver or pairing	Fix 3
Laptop keyboard dead, but a USB keyboard works	Function lock, driver or hardware	Fix 4, Fix 6
Letters type numbers, or symbols are in the wrong place	Num Lock or the wrong keyboard layout	Fix 4, Fix 5
Stopped after a driver or Windows update	Driver change	Fix 6
One key does something else, or nothing at all	A remap tool or registry remap	Fix 7
Typing works in Notepad but not in search or Start	Text input process, not the keyboard	Fix 8

If only the Windows logo key is affected, our Windows key guide deals with that one key in detail.

Fix 1: Rule out the keyboard, cable and port

These checks take a couple of minutes and tell you where to look next:

• Test in Notepad. A game, a web form or a remote desktop window can swallow keystrokes on its own. Notepad shows whether Windows receives them at all.
• Change the port. Unplug the keyboard and plug it straight into a different USB port on the PC, not into a hub, dock or monitor port. On a desktop, the ports on the back connect directly to the motherboard.
• Restart. Use Restart from the Start menu’s power button rather than Shut down, which on many PCs doesn’t fully reload drivers when Fast Startup is on.
• Try another keyboard. If a second keyboard works on this PC, the first one is faulty or needs its own software. If the original keyboard works on another PC, the cause is in Windows on this one.

While you troubleshoot, you can type with the mouse. Microsoft’s On-Screen Keyboard page says to turn it on in Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard with the On-Screen Keyboard switch, and its accessibility shortcut list gives Win + Ctrl + O to open it.

Fix 2: Turn off Filter keys and Sticky keys

Filter keys is a common reason a working keyboard suddenly seems dead. Microsoft describes it as setting the keyboard’s sensitivity so it can ignore brief or repeated keystrokes. With strict settings, normal typing is too quick to register, so keys appear to do nothing unless you hold them down.

It’s easy to turn on by accident. According to Microsoft’s accessibility shortcut list, holding the right Shift key for eight seconds turns Filter keys on or off, and pressing Shift five times does the same for Sticky keys. Leaning on Shift during a game or while reaching for something can be enough.

1. Open Start > Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard. If you can’t type, use the mouse; Win + U also opens the Accessibility page.
2. Turn off Filter keys.
3. Turn off Sticky keys too, unless you use it on purpose. Sticky keys lets you press shortcuts one key at a time, so it can make Shift, Ctrl or Alt seem stuck.
4. Test in Notepad again.

If you rely on these features, leave them on and open their settings instead to change the timing, or to stop the keyboard shortcut from switching them on. Toggle keys on the same page only plays a sound for Caps Lock, Num Lock and Scroll Lock, so it doesn’t stop typing.

Fix 3: Wireless and Bluetooth keyboards

A wireless keyboard can lose its link while the batteries still have enough charge to light an LED, so replace or charge them first, even if they seem fine.

• Keyboards with a USB receiver: plug the receiver into a port close to the keyboard, ideally on the front of the PC or with a short USB extension cable. Metal cases and USB 3 devices next to the receiver can weaken the signal. Check that the keyboard’s power switch is on.
• Multi-device keyboards: many have buttons that switch between paired devices. If the keyboard is set to a phone or tablet, it won’t type on the PC. Press the button for the PC’s slot.
• Bluetooth keyboards: make sure Bluetooth is on, then remove the keyboard in Settings > Bluetooth & devices and pair it again. Microsoft’s Bluetooth pairing page says to put the device in pairing mode, select the chevron on the Bluetooth quick setting and choose the device under New devices. Some keyboards ask you to type a code shown on screen to finish pairing.

If the keyboard won’t pair or keeps dropping out, our re-pairing steps and the rest of the Bluetooth troubleshooting guide cover the adapter side, including drivers and power settings.

Fix 4: Laptop keyboards

A built-in keyboard connects internally, so cables and batteries aren’t the issue, but a few laptop features can make it look broken:

• Function lock. Many laptops have an Fn lock, often marked with a padlock on Esc or another key. It swaps the top row between F-keys and media controls, so if only that row misbehaves, press Fn + the lock key. The key differs by model, so check the manual.
• Letters type numbers. On laptops without a number pad, Num Lock can turn letter keys such as U, I and O into a number pad. See our Num Lock guide for how to switch it off and for the Mouse Keys setting that makes number keys move the pointer.
• Maker apps. Some laptop control apps can turn off the built-in keyboard or lock keys for gaming. Open the maker’s app and check for a keyboard or game mode setting.
• Tablet mode on 2-in-1s. On convertibles, folding the screen back usually turns the keyboard off on purpose. Open the laptop fully and wait a moment.

Test outside Windows: restart the laptop and press the key that opens UEFI (BIOS) setup during start-up; the key varies by maker, often F2, F10, Del or Esc. Only use the arrow keys to look around, change nothing, and leave without saving. If the keyboard can’t move around the setup screens either, the fault is in the hardware or firmware, not in Windows, and the laptop maker’s support is the next step. If it works there but not in Windows, carry on with Fix 6.

Fix 5: Keys type the wrong characters

If the keyboard types but symbols come out in the wrong place (@ and " swapped, or Z and Y swapped, for example), Windows is using a different keyboard layout from the one printed on your keys. That often happens after Win + Space is pressed by accident, because that shortcut cycles through the installed layouts, as Microsoft’s language and keyboard layout page explains.

1. Select the input language icon next to the clock and pick the right layout, or press Win + Space until it’s selected.
2. To stop it happening again, go to Start > Settings > Time & language > Language & region, select the three dots next to your language and choose Language options.
3. Under Keyboards, select the three dots next to a layout you don’t use and choose Remove. If Remove is greyed out, it’s the only layout for that language, so add the correct one with Add a keyboard first.

Fix 6: Reinstall or roll back the keyboard driver

If another keyboard works but yours doesn’t, or the keyboard stopped straight after an update, look at its driver. Right-click Start, open Device Manager and expand Keyboards. A yellow warning icon on an entry means Windows has a problem with that device; double-click it to read the status message.

Microsoft’s Device Manager driver page gives three options:

• Roll back: if the keyboard stopped after a driver or Windows update, open the device’s Properties, go to the Driver tab and select Roll Back Driver. Microsoft notes that rolling back often helps with problems that start after an update. The button is greyed out if there’s no earlier driver to go back to.
• Reinstall: right-click the keyboard, select Uninstall device, confirm, and restart. Windows tries to reinstall the driver as it starts.
• Update: right-click the keyboard, select Update driver and then Search automatically for updated driver software. For a laptop keyboard, the maker’s support site may have a newer keyboard, chipset or firmware update for your exact model; avoid driver updater tools and download sites.

Before you uninstall the only keyboard, open the On-Screen Keyboard (Fix 1) or plug in a spare, so you can still sign in if the reinstall doesn’t work first time.

If the keyboard’s Properties window has a Power Management tab, clearing Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power can help a USB keyboard that stops responding after the PC has been idle. Not every keyboard shows this tab.

Fix 7: Look for remapping software

When one key does something unexpected, or nothing, and a second keyboard behaves the same way, something in Windows is remapping it. Close or check these first:

• PowerToys Keyboard Manager and AutoHotkey scripts. Exiting them from the notification area undoes their remaps while they’re closed, which makes for a quick test.
• Keyboard and gaming software such as Logitech G HUB, Razer Synapse or Corsair iCUE, which can store remaps and key locks per profile or per game.

Warning: a remap stored in the registry as a Scancode Map value applies to every keyboard on the PC. Editing the registry incorrectly can stop Windows from working properly, so export a backup before you change anything. Our Windows key guide shows how to find and back up a Scancode Map safely; the same steps apply to any remapped key.

Fix 8: Typing fails only in search or Start

If the keyboard types in Notepad and other desktop programs but nothing appears in the taskbar search box, the Start menu or Settings, the keyboard is fine. Those boxes depend on a Windows text input process that can stop on its own. Our guide to fixing can’t type in Windows search starts by restarting ctfmon.exe, which is usually the quickest fix.

Known issues

As of November 2026, Microsoft’s Windows 11, version 25H2 known issues and notifications page (last updated November 5, 2026) lists no open issue with keyboards or other input devices. The one item still open concerns USB audio devices, not keyboards.

Microsoft’s resolved issues list for version 25H2 includes one keyboard problem worth knowing about: after update KB5066835 in October 2025, USB keyboards and mice didn’t work inside the Windows Recovery Environment, although they kept working in Windows itself. Microsoft resolved it with the out-of-band update KB5070773 on October 20, 2025. If your USB keyboard works in Windows but not on the blue recovery screens, check that the PC is fully up to date.

Known issues change, so check the first page again if your keyboard stopped working straight after an update.

Related guides

• Windows key not working: how to fix it in Windows 11 and 10
• Num Lock Not Working in Windows 11/10: 6 Ways to Fix It
• Bluetooth not working in Windows 11: how to fix it
• Can’t Type in Windows Search Bar? 7 Fixes for Windows 11/10
• Alt+Tab not working in Windows 11: how to fix it

Official sources

• Microsoft: Make your mouse, keyboard, and other input devices easier to use
• Microsoft: Update drivers through Device Manager in Windows
• Microsoft: Manage the language and keyboard/input layout settings in Windows