How to type in Korean on any device
Consonants on the left hand, vowels on the right. The layout does the stacking for you.
Typing Korean is easier than typing English, once it's set up. You type letters in order and the keyboard assembles the syllable blocks automatically.
Setup takes about thirty seconds on any device.
Learn to read before you type — the free worksheets take a weekend.
Turning the keyboard on
iPhone: Settings → General → Keyboard → Keyboards → Add New Keyboard → Korean. Choose the standard layout rather than the 10-key one while you're learning.
Android: Settings → System → Languages & input → Keyboard → add Korean. Windows: Settings → Time & Language → Language → add Korean. Mac: System Settings → Keyboard → Input Sources → Korean (2-Set).
How the 2-set layout works
Consonants live on the left of the keyboard, vowels on the right. Type ㅎ then ㅏ then ㄴ and the software stacks them into 한 by itself — you never think about block layout while typing.
The rhythm becomes left-right-left almost immediately, which is why Korean typing gets fast quickly.
Tense consonants and shift
Hold shift for the doubles: shift+ㄱ gives ㄲ, shift+ㅅ gives ㅆ. Same for ㄸ, ㅃ, ㅉ. Two vowels also need shift: ㅒ and ㅖ.
Why you still need to know the letters
Auto-assembly means a typo produces a real but wrong syllable rather than an obvious mess. If you can't read Hangul, you can't spot it — so learn to read before you rely on typing.
Common questions
Should I learn the key positions?+
They come naturally after a week of use. Don't drill them — just type things you already know how to read.
Can I handwrite instead?+
Yes, both iOS and Android have Korean handwriting input, and it's excellent practice for stroke order.
Both worksheets, free
The 4-page Hangul alphabet worksheet and the 2-page syllable bonus, emailed in seconds.