If you have been wondering how to input Hangul into your computer, phone or tablet here is a simple guide for typing Korean letters. First we will give you all the steps you need to properly set up your device and then explain the typing technique.

As you already know Hangul is Korean alphabet, but instead of being written sequentially (in a horizontal line one after the other) like Latin letters, Hangul letters are grouped into blocks. How these blocks are formed can be confusing for the person attempting to type it for the first time. Don’t worry, it is all automatic and easier than you think.

Contents:

1. Windows
   • Setting up the device
   • Typing
2. Android
   • Setting up the device
   • Typing
3. iPhone
   • Setting up the device
   • Typing
4. Virtual Keyboards for typing Korean
5. Type Korean using Romanization

1. Windows

How to enable Korean keyboard in Windows

Find the icon on the right side of your taskbar that shows which language you have enabled at the moment. Right click it and choose Settings.

(If you are unable to find it, go to Control Panel -> Region and Language, on the Keyboards and Languages tab, click Change keyboards.)

Click the Add… button on the right side.

Scroll down to find Korean and check the box for Microsoft IME. Click OK.

Now Korean keyboard has been added to your list.

Click OK again.

You can toggle between multiple keyboards by pressing Alt+Shift at the same time. You will see the two letters change to indicate which keyboard is active at the moment. If you press AltGr (right Alt) you will toggle between using Latin alphabet marked by A

or Hangul marked by 가.

You are ready to type Hangul!

Typing Hangul using computer

Lets say you want to type 사랑해요. Assuming you have keyboard with Latin alphabet you are going to press

and on your screen 살 will show up. You might think: “But I wantㄹ in the second syllable, not first!”. No worries. As soon as you press

this is going to happen 사라. The “ㄹ” is automatically moved to the next syllable. Computer knows that the combination 살ㅏ is impossible so it knows to move the “ㄹ” into the next syllable. Neat, right?

Now just continue

And you have 사랑해요!

To get double consonants like ㅉ press SHIFT+ㅈ.

Here is a layout of the whole keyboard, click on it to see it full size.

you can save this picture on your computer and use it, or buy cute stickers like the ones I got from Korea, and put them on your keyboard so you know where each letter is.

2. Android

How to enable Korean keyboard on Android device

Visit Android Market on your device. Search for “Korean keyboard”. I use Korean Hangul Keyboard (Beta) but you can choose any you like. Note that all the keyboards I came across are not apps but have to be enabled through Settings.

Click Settings, then choose Language & input, then Configure input methods. Select keyboards you installed.

Typing Korean on Android tablet or Android phone

Different keyboards have different input methods but you can find explanations how to use them in the app description. There are usually two main types, those that come with full keyboard like this one:

Full keyboard for Android.

After pressing shift letters like ㅉ,ㄸ,ㄲ,… become available.

which is convenient for bigger devices like tablets, and those that are more compact like this one:

You can find this keyboard by searching ‘Moakey’ on Android Market.

and thus convenient for phones. They have a neat trick to use them. You might notice the vowels are missing on this one. You simply choose the consonant you wish to start the syllable with, and then swipe your finger in different directions to get different consonants. Here is a schematic for getting syllables that start with consonant ㅇ. You put your finger on the key you want and then without lifting your finger move it in the direction of the arrows to get the desired syllable.

3. iPhone

How to enable Korean keyboard on iPhone

Choose Settings, then General

Click Keyboard.

Click International Keyboards.

Click Add New Keyboard, and then choose Korean. This is what you keyboard will look like.

Typing Korean on iPhone

All letters are available on this keyboard, press SHIFT (arrow up) for double consonants and globe icon for switching between keyboards.

4. Virtual Korean keyboards

Virtual keyboard are online keyboards you can use with your web browser. They are convenient if you don’t want to go trough trouble of setting up the keyboard on your device, or you need the keyboard rarely. Here are links to some of them:

• Branah (virtual, click or press keys)
• Wandel (virtual, even has diphthongs)
• Linguanaut (virtual, with shortcuts)
• Lexilogos (virtual, click, no key pressing)

5. Type Korean using Romanization

If you want to input Korean by only typing Romanization, for example by typing h a n g eu l to get 한글 you can use this website

SayJack romanization

Check the radio button that says “Revised Romanization” and type away. When you’re finished, copy paste the Hangul text and you’re done.

Even though this way you don’t need to learn Korean Keyboard layout, we still strongly suggest you take your time to do so. It is faster, more proper, and you can type directly without bothering to copy-paste. However, typing Korean using Romanization can be faster in the beginning  and can also help you to learn how to properly romanize Korean language.

We hope this will be helpful to you. If you have any questions or if you would like to recommend a Korean Hangul keyboard that you like to use, write in the comments bellow.

 
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