About the Japanese keyboard
Japanese is typed in romaji — Latin letters for the sounds — and the computer turns them into kana. Type ka and you get か; type sushi and you get すし.
This page does the same in your browser: type romaji on your normal keyboard and it turns into hiragana or katakana as you type. Or click the kana chart below to pick the characters one by one. Nothing to install.
How to use it
- Choose Hiragana or Katakana
- Type romaji on your own keyboard: ka → か, shi → し, tsu → つ, kya → きゃ — no need to click the text box first
- Double a consonant for a small っ: kitte → きって
- Type nn (or n') for ん; - gives the long sound ー (in katakana: ko-hi- → コーヒー)
- Or click the characters in the kana chart
- Click Copy and paste the text anywhere, or Search Google / Translate straight away
Romaji that is good to know
- shi / si → し, chi / ti → ち, tsu / tu → つ, fu / hu → ふ, ji / zi → じ
- Small ya, yu, yo: kya きゃ, sho しょ, ryu りゅ, ja じゃ
- Foreign sounds: fa ふぁ, fi ふぃ, fe ふぇ, fo ふぉ — or type x before a vowel for a small one: xa → ぁ
- wo → を (the particle), ha is は — Japanese writes the particle "wa" as は
What it cannot do
Japanese also uses kanji — thousands of Chinese characters. Choosing the right kanji needs a big dictionary, so this page writes in kana only. Hiragana is how children write and how kanji are read; katakana is used for foreign words and names.
Private and free
Everything happens in your browser: nothing you type is uploaded. Your text is kept on this device only, so it is still there when you come back. No sign-up, no install.
Frequently asked questions
How do I type Japanese without a Japanese keyboard?
Type romaji on this page — ka, shi, tsu — and it turns into hiragana or katakana as you type. You can also click the kana chart.
How do I switch between hiragana and katakana?
Use the Hiragana / Katakana switch at the top. What you type next is written in that script.
How do I type ん, っ and ー?
Type nn (or n') for ん, double a consonant (tt, kk) for っ, and a hyphen for the long sound ー.
Can I type kanji?
No — choosing kanji needs a large dictionary. This keyboard writes hiragana and katakana.
Is my text saved or uploaded?
Nothing is uploaded. Your text is kept only in this browser.
Good to know
- Already have a Japanese input method (IME)? Untick Type with my own keyboard and use it as usual
- Your name in katakana: type it in romaji with Katakana on — ema gives エマ
Related tools
- Korean Keyboard — type in Hangul
- Your Name in Korean — your name in Hangul
- Russian Keyboard — type in Cyrillic
- Text to Speech — hear the text read out
- Character Counter — count letters
- Fancy Text Generator — stylish letters
