Peripherals have always been a hot debate in the PC gaming world, separating mechanical keyboard enjoyers from membrane keyboard users. "How dare you use a full size keyboard?" "Why on earth do you like Cherry MX Blues?" "Wireless? What the hell that's pointless bro!?", all points that have a small amount of validity to them, this article will explain the ins and outs of gaming keyboards, at the end of it you'll know everything that's needed in order to make an informed decision on your next peripheral procurement.

Glorious GMMK Pro, and Logitech G PRO Superlight.

1 - TYPES OF GAMING KEYBOARD

  • Membrane Keyboards are your budget option, they'll do a good enough job, they won't break if you spill a pint of milk on them and they won't wake up your coinhabitants with loud clicky switches. You can get "Gaming" keyboards which use membrane switches, which do give you some of the features you'd see from higher end keyboards, we'll go though those in detail later on.
  • Mechanical Keyboards are what you really want, they use mechanical switches that use a spring-loaded mechanism that causes metal contacts to touch, registering the key press. There are hundreds of different types of mechanical keyboard switches, so customisability is virtually endless. Premium features are also more common on mechanical keyboards, so expect detachable cables, premium keycaps and high-quality backlighting to name a few.
  • Mecha-membrane Keyboards deserve at least a small mention, these are membrane keyboards that have a small metal tab under each key, creating a "fake" mechanical click when you press each key. We won't differentiate these from membrane keyboards in this article going forward though, as they don't fool anybody.

2 - IMPORTANT FEATURES TO CONSIDER

  • Switch Type is the important one, the choice between mechanical or membrane will be entirely based on budget. With a membrane keyboard, the switch type is all the same, so below we'll expand on the different types of mechanical keyboard switch. Mechanical key switches have a spring inside them, and different switches have different activation weights, determined by this spring. It's difficult to explain how different spring weights feel, but for gaming you genrally want to be between 50g and 70g.
    • Linear Switches are smooth throughout the key travel, with no click or bump when the key is activated. They are quiet, so generally the best option if you don't want your keyboard to disturb anybody. Examples of linear switches are Cherry MX Red, Gateron Ink Black V2 and Cherry MX Speed Silver.
    • Clicky Switches have a tactile bump and audible click when the key is activated. If you've heard a keyboard that seems to have a satitsfying click to each keypress, it will have clicky switches. They are the loudest of the three switch types, so if you're buying a keyboard for the office, stick to the other two types! Examples of clicky switches are Cherry MX Blue, Kailh Box Jade and Cherry MX Green.
    • Tactile Switches are the best of both worlds, they have the tactile bump of the clicky switches, but without the audible click, so they are as quiet as linear switches. These are by far the most popular, we love them too! Examples of tactiles switches are Cherry MX Brown, Durock T1 and Glorious Panda.
Different Cherry MX mechanical keyboard switches
  • Keyboard Layout & Size is also one of the main considerations when choosing a keyboard, there are a few different options for you to choose from. If you're unsure what keyboard layout you want, you want UK-ISO, unless you're somewhere else in the world, then you want whatever the local layout is. Keyboard Size is where you have to make a choice from the below options
    • 100%, full size, or 104-key keyboards are your standard sized keyboard that you'll be familiar with, so I don't think we need to explain any further.
    • 80%, Tenkeyless (TKL), or 87-key keyboards are the same as a standard keyboard, but are missing the numpad. They still have F Keys and Arrow Keys, so you aren't losing much functionality. These are popular with gamers, as it gives you more desk space for your mouse.
    • 65%, Compact or 68-key keyboards are less popular as they have less features, no F Keys and no Arrow keys mean that you might struggle with games that require lots of keybinds (cough, Arma, cough).
    • Other options are available but are not as popular, there are compact versions of full size, and TKL keyboards, and also a 60% option which removes even more keys from the 65% layout.
Different keyboard size options, specifically for Corsair gaming keyboards
  • Key Profile is less important, but still worth looking at. Recently we're seeing a lot of slim profile keycaps, which are similar to the sort of key you get on a laptop. 95% of gaming keyboards will use an OEM or Cherry Style key profile, but if you prefer a rounder key then XDA or DSA key profiles might be worth looking at.
  • Wireless? Do you need it? Well, we do think it's a bit pointless but this is personal preference really. Unlike a gaming mouse, your keyboard stays (mostly) static on your desk, so a cable isn't going to affect you gaming performance.

3 - LESS IMPORTANT FEATURES TO CONSIDER

  • RGB Lighting is personal preference, although you'll struggle to find a gaming keyboard without it. Good news is that most gaming keyboards that come with RGB Lighting will have a button or piece of software that will let you control the lights, and turn them off if you want to.
RGB Backlighting on a gaming keyboard
  • Macro Keys are very important for some gamers. They allow you to set up and execute sequences of keystrokes with the press of a single button. This can give you the edge in MMOs, strategy titles and fighting games. Be wary though, as some games would class this is cheating!
  • Software is something you'd possibly want to consider, as it can help you configure your RGB Lighting, Marco keys and more. Using Corsair keyboards as an example, the iCUE software lets you do all of the above, and sync lighting with the rest of the devices in their ecosystem too.
  • Key Rollover is a keyboards ability to register multiple keystrokes at the same time, most gaming keyboards will have n-key rollover (NKRO) which allows the keyboard to correctly register an input from every key on the keyboard, all at the same time.
  • Media Controls are also very important for some users, this adds extra buttons to a keyboard which allows you to control the media on your computer. These often include a volume dial too.
Media controls on the Corsair K55 Core RGB
  • USB Passthrough is a feature we're seeing less and less nowadays, probably due to the popularity of wireless gaming mice. This feature would add a USB port to the keyboard that you'd have to plug in to your PC, but add a USB port on the side of back of the keyboard.
  • Detachable Cable is exactly what it says on the tin, a cable that you can detach. This is beneficial if you want a fancy coiled cable that looks nice sitting in your desk, but is also good as it's much easier to replace a detachable cable. It's 2025, so if you're buying a keyboard with a detachable cable, make sure it's USB Type-C.
  • Anti-Ghosting is similar to Key Rollover, specifically NRKO. It essentially makes sure that the keys that are pressed are the only keys that are activated, so you don't get "ghost" key-presses. Almost all modern gaming keyboards will have some sort of anti-ghosting feature.

4 - WHAT SHOULD I BUY?

Budget and Gaming Style are the only factors that aren't entirely personal preference, if you're playing a game that requires all the keys on a keyboard, then go for a full size keyboard. If not, then maybe a Tenkeyless keyboard is the better option. If your budget is limited, membrane is what you want. Anyway, here are our recommendations:

  • Marvo Scorpion K616A - A decent full-size membrane keyboard, with RGB lighting, media keys and anti-ghosting. At £16 you won't get anything better, so it's the perfect choice for a gamer on a budget.
  • Marvo Scorpion KG909 - Sensing a theme with brands here? Another cheap keyboard, priced at £38, but this one is mechanical! It uses utemu Blue switches, which are similar to Cherry MX Blues, so are a clicky switch. Not ideal for gaming, but considering the second cheapest mechanical keyboard we sell is £180, you can't really complain. It also has RGB lighting, anti-ghosting and a metal plate.
  • Logitech G413 TKL SE - A great budget option from a brand you've probably heard of. It uses a TKL layout so is a good choice for FPS gamers, but doesn't have many features. The switches are Logitech's "Tactile Mechanical" so similar to a Gateron or utemu Brown. Key backlighting is white, not RGB, but it does have the standard anti-ghosting that you'd expect from a gaming keyboard.
  • Corsair K70 Core RGB - This is Corsair's full-size mechanical offering, it's available in multiple switch types with the popular one being Corsair's MLX Red linear switches. It has all the features you'd expect, including NRKO, anti-ghosting, RGB and media control.
  • Glorious GMMK 3 PRO - Quite possibly the GOAT gaming keyboard, this has everything you need. Very solid build quality, hot swappable mechanical switches, media controls, RGB backlighting, volume knob, high-quality keycaps and everything else you'd expect. It's also available in 65%, 75% and 100% layouts.

5 - SUMMARY

Well, you should be a master when it comes to gaming keyboards now, hopefully all the information wasn't too overwhelming and you're now in a position to pick the perfect gaming keyboard. We have plenty of options available to purchase with any of our gaming PCs which we've thoroughly tested, if you're looking for a recommendation to go with your shiny new PC, get in touch!