Five Ways to Type Faster on Your Phone
There’s one way to be more productive on your mobile device that works no matter what you’re doing on your phone or what app you’re using: the ability to type faster. Whether you’re filling out a web form or chatting in a group chat, typing faster saves seconds and minutes that can add up.
And there are more ways to do this than you might think, from hidden keyboard shortcuts to entirely new approaches to typing. Try one or more of these methods, and you’ll find yourself carving out more time to spend away from your phone screen (or writing even more messages on it).
Swipe to enter text
Instead of lifting your finger off the screen and tapping each letter again, you can simply swipe to type: tap the first letter of a word, then swipe to the next letter, and so on until the word is written. Once you get used to it, this can speed up typing considerably. This feature is enabled by default on Pixel and iOS devices, but you need to enable it on the Samsung keyboard.
To control this feature on Pixel devices, tap the gear icon on the keyboard, then tap Glide input . On iPhone, go to Settings, then tap General > Keyboard > Glide input . On Samsung phones, you need to enable the feature: tap the gear icon on the keyboard, then tap Swipe, tap, and feedback > Keyboard swipe controls > Glide input .
Text keyboard shortcuts
If you often type the same phrases in messages, you can save them as keyboard shortcuts that will be activated with a special code: for example, every time you type “omw”, “on my way” will be displayed as a suggestion.
On Pixel devices, you can manage these shortcuts by tapping the gear icon on your keyboard, then Dictionary > Personal Dictionary , then your current language: Tap the + (plus) icon in the top-right corner to add a shortcut.
On Samsung phones, tap the gear icon on the keyboard, then select Shortcuts to add or remove shortcuts. On iPhone, you can customize the shortcut in General > Keyboard > Text Replacement in Settings.
Walk with one hand
We’ve already written about how to make it easier to use your phone with one hand on Android and iOS , but it’s worth repeating here. Having only one hand free can seriously slow down your typing speed, but it doesn’t have to.
With the keyboard open on Android, tap the four squares in the top left corner (Pixels) or the three dots in the top right corner (Samsung) to find the one-handed control button, which slides the keyboard to one side or the other (use the arrow to toggle).
On iPhone, open the keyboard, then press and hold the globe icon (lower-left corner). A row of icons will appear that let you slide the keyboard left or right, or return it to its normal size.
Use your voice
You probably don’t want to dictate a private message to your partner across the subway car, but if you’re busy with other things, voice input is a convenient alternative. Depending on your typing speed, voice input can help you type messages faster.
Enabling it couldn’t be easier. Every standard keyboard has a microphone icon: top-right on the Pixel, bottom-left on the Samsung, and bottom-right on the iPhone. Tap the button and start speaking — and you’ll be able to pronounce punctuation, too.
Try different keyboards
Both Android and iOS let you install and switch between alternative keyboards, and you may find that they help you type faster: for example, check out Typewise for Android or iOS , which offers larger buttons, lots of customization, and the aforementioned ability to swipe to type.
Then there’s Microsoft’s SwiftKey , also available for Android and iOS, which gives you tons of options to customize your keyboard to suit your typing style, and also promises the most accurate autocorrect and text prediction, meaning you can type the message you want faster.