AZERTY vs QWERTY keyboards — why France uses different layout and best French keyboards to buy (A2–B2)

France uses AZERTY keyboards while English-speaking countries use QWERTY, creating confusion for language learners and travelers. This difference stems from nineteenth-century typewriter adaptations optimizing letter placement for French language frequency. Understanding why these layouts diverged, how they differ practically, and which French keyboard to buy transforms typing French from frustrating workaround to natural expression.

The historical origins — why different keyboard layouts exist

Keyboard layouts originated with mechanical typewriters in the late 1800s, when key arrangement directly affected typing mechanics. Early typewriters jammed when adjacent typebars struck the platen simultaneously, forcing manufacturers to separate frequently-paired letters physically. The QWERTY layout emerged in the 1870s specifically to reduce jamming by distributing common English letter combinations across the keyboard, slowing typists slightly but preventing mechanical failures.

Christopher Latham Sholes patented the QWERTY design in 1873, and Remington mass-produced it beginning 1874. This layout became standard for English-language typewriters through market dominance and typing school adoption, creating path dependency that persists despite computers eliminating mechanical jamming concerns. QWERTY’s illogical letter placement (frequently-used letters require awkward finger stretches) reflects its mechanical origins rather than optimal typing efficiency.

France adapted typewriter technology but modified key layouts to accommodate French language requirements. French uses accented characters (é, è, ê, à, ù, ç, etc.) absent from English, requiring additional keys or key combinations. French letter frequency differs from English—’Q’ appears rarely in English but more frequently in French (que, qui, quel), while ‘W’ virtually never appears in native French words. These linguistic differences motivated creating AZERTY as French-specific adaptation rather than importing QWERTY unchanged.

AZERTY vs QWERTY — the key differences

Letter position changes

The name itself reveals the primary difference: the first six letters on the top letter row. QWERTY arranges them Q-W-E-R-T-Y, while AZERTY uses A-Z-E-R-T-Y. Additional significant changes include:

Major positional changes:

• A and Q swap positions: QWERTY’s ‘Q’ moves to where AZERTY places ‘A’
• Z and W swap positions: QWERTY’s ‘W’ moves to AZERTY’s ‘Z’ location
• M moves: QWERTY places ‘M’ right of ‘N’; AZERTY places it right of ‘L’
• Punctuation relocates: Period, comma, semicolon occupy different positions

Number and symbol access

AZERTY’s most confusing difference for QWERTY users: numbers require Shift key activation. QWERTY provides direct number access (pressing ‘5’ types 5), with Shift producing symbols (Shift+5 types %). AZERTY reverses this—pressing ‘5’ types ‘(‘ while Shift+5 types 5. This design prioritizes frequent French accent mark access over numbers, reflecting French typography conventions where accents appear more frequently than numerals in typical text.

Accent marks and special characters

AZERTY provides direct keys for common French diacritics:

• é: Dedicated key (number row position 2)
• è: Dedicated key (number row position 7)
• ç: Dedicated key (number row position 9)
• à: Dedicated key (number row position 0)
• ù: Accessible through dedicated key

Additional accents (ê, î, ô, û, ë, ï, ü) require dead key combinations—press accent key (^, ¨) then vowel. This system enables efficient French typing without memorizing complex alt-code sequences QWERTY users suffer through.

Why France adopted and maintains AZERTY

Linguistic optimization for French

AZERTY positions commonly-used French letters more accessibly than QWERTY would. The letter ‘A’ appears extremely frequently in French (second most common after ‘E’), so moving it from QWERTY’s pinky-finger position to stronger finger placement improves typing efficiency for French text. Similarly, ‘Q’ and ‘W’ swap reflects their frequency inversion between English and French.

French typography requires extensive accent usage—approximately fifteen percent of French text contains accented characters. QWERTY provides no efficient accent access, forcing workarounds like alt-codes (Alt+0233 for é) or character insertion menus. AZERTY’s direct accent keys transform what’s tedious on QWERTY into natural, fluid French typing.

Historical path dependency

Once French typists, typing schools, and businesses adopted AZERTY during the typewriter era, switching costs became prohibitive. Retraining millions of typists, replacing equipment, and updating instructional materials would cost far more than marginal efficiency gains from alternative layouts. This path dependency—where historical choices constrain future options regardless of optimal decisions—explains why obviously suboptimal layouts (both QWERTY and AZERTY place letters inefficiently compared to Dvorak or Colemak alternatives) persist despite computer technology eliminating their original mechanical justifications.

France attempted standardizing AZERTY variants in 2019 (AFNOR standard), recognizing that multiple AZERTY versions existed with slight variations causing confusion. However, even this modest standardization effort struggled against entrenched habits and compatibility concerns, demonstrating how powerfully path dependency resists change even when improvements seem obvious.

The typing experience — practical differences for users

For English speakers learning French

English speakers learning French face significant challenges typing French on QWERTY keyboards. Accessing accented characters requires memorizing dozens of alt-code combinations, installing special software (international keyboard layouts, AutoHotkey scripts), or constantly interrupting writing flow to insert special characters from menus. This friction discourages practicing written French and produces unaccented text that appears unprofessional or careless to French readers.

Switching to AZERTY keyboard eliminates these barriers, making accented French as natural to type as unaccented English. However, the transition requires relearning typing—your muscle memory expects ‘A’ where AZERTY places ‘Q’, causing initial frustration and error-filled typing until new patterns internalize. Most learners report two to four weeks of slower, error-prone typing before regaining comfortable speed with AZERTY layout.

For French speakers learning English

French speakers face mirror-image challenges learning QWERTY for English typing. The A/Q and Z/W swaps create constant errors, while searching for relocated punctuation marks interrupts flow. Additionally, AZERTY’s Shift-for-numbers training conflicts with QWERTY’s direct number access, causing French typists to accidentally type symbols when intending numbers until muscle memory adapts.

How to type French accents on QWERTY keyboards

If you’re not ready to switch to AZERTY but need to type French regularly, several workarounds exist for QWERTY keyboards:

Method 1: US-International keyboard layout

Enable US-International layout in operating system settings. This converts certain keys to dead keys producing accents:

• é: Press apostrophe (‘), then ‘e’
• è: Press backtick (`), then ‘e’
• ê: Press Shift+6 (^), then ‘e’
• ç: Press apostrophe (‘), then ‘c’
• à, ù: Press backtick (`), then ‘a’ or ‘u’

Advantage: System-level solution working across all applications

Disadvantage: Changes apostrophe and backtick behavior for English, requiring space after these characters

Method 2: Alt codes (Windows)

Hold Alt and type numpad code:

• é: Alt+0233
• è: Alt+0232
• ê: Alt+0234
• à: Alt+0224
• ç: Alt+0231
• ù: Alt+0249

Advantage: Works without changing keyboard settings

Disadvantage: Requires memorizing dozens of codes, very slow, requires numpad

Method 3: Option key combinations (Mac)

Mac provides intuitive accent access through Option key:

• é: Option+e, then ‘e’
• è: Option+`, then ‘e’
• ê: Option+i, then ‘e’
• ç: Option+c
• à, ù: Option+`, then ‘a’ or ‘u’

Advantage: Relatively intuitive, system-wide

Disadvantage: Still slower than dedicated AZERTY keys

Best French AZERTY keyboards to buy on Amazon

If you’ve decided to embrace AZERTY for your French learning journey, here are the best French keyboards available on Amazon US with proper AZERTY layout:

What to consider when buying a French keyboard

Physical labels vs software switching

You can configure any keyboard to output AZERTY through software settings, but physical key labels matter significantly for learning. Unlabeled keys force memorization without visual reference, slowing learning and causing errors. French-labeled AZERTY keyboards provide visual confirmation, accelerating muscle memory development and reducing cognitive load during transition period.

Wired vs wireless

Wired advantages: No batteries to replace, no connection lag, typically cheaper, more reliable

Wireless advantages: Desk organization, portability, flexibility in positioning

For stationary desktop use, wired keyboards offer excellent value. For laptops, tablets, or flexible workspaces, wireless provides worthwhile convenience despite higher cost and battery maintenance.

Full-size vs compact layouts

Full-size (100%): Includes numeric keypad, navigation cluster, function row—best for number-heavy work

Tenkeyless (TKL / 80%): Removes numeric pad—more portable, better for limited desk space

Compact (75% or smaller): Minimal footprint—highly portable but requires learning layered key functions

French learners benefit most from full-size or TKL layouts providing all standard keys without requiring layer key combinations for common characters.

Mechanical vs membrane switches

Mechanical: Individual switches per key, tactile feedback, durable (50+ million keystrokes), premium feel, more expensive, audible clicking

Membrane: Single rubber sheet under all keys, quieter, cheaper, adequate durability for most users, less tactile satisfaction

Budget: membrane (Logitech K120, Microsoft 600). Premium: mechanical (Keychron, custom builds). Most users find membrane perfectly adequate for language learning and general typing.

Configuring your computer for French keyboard

Windows configuration

1. Settings → Time & Language → Language
2. Click “Add a language” → Select “French (France)”
3. Under French, click Options → Add keyboard → Choose “French”
4. Switch between layouts: Alt+Shift or click language indicator in taskbar

Mac configuration

1. System Preferences → Keyboard → Input Sources
2. Click “+” button → Select “French” → Choose “French”
3. Enable “Show Input menu in menu bar”
4. Switch between layouts: Cmd+Space or click flag icon in menu bar

Linux configuration

1. Settings → Region & Language → Input Sources
2. Click “+” → Select “French (France)”
3. Switch between layouts: Super+Space or use system tray indicator

Learning AZERTY — timeline and tips

Realistic learning timeline

Days 1-3: Extreme frustration, constant errors, 30-50% slower typing. Your fingers automatically move to QWERTY positions producing wrong letters. Expect email typos and slow messaging.

Week 1: Still error-prone but beginning to consciously find letters without hunting. Typing speed 50-70% of normal QWERTY speed. Most difficult period—many people quit here.

Weeks 2-3: Muscle memory starting to develop. Error rate declining noticeably. Speed reaching 70-85% of QWERTY baseline. French accent typing feeling natural and fluid.

Week 4+: Approaching normal typing speed with declining errors. AZERTY positions becoming automatic. French writing flowing naturally without conscious thought about accents.

2-3 months: Full AZERTY proficiency matching or exceeding original QWERTY speed for French text. Accent marks unconscious. May now make errors when switching back to QWERTY.

Learning acceleration tips

Typing practice websites: Use TypingClub, Keybr, or 10FastFingers with French AZERTY settings for structured practice

Label your existing keyboard: If not buying French keyboard immediately, place label stickers showing AZERTY layout on current keyboard for visual reference

Commit fully: Switching between QWERTY and AZERTY constantly prevents muscle memory development. Choose dedicated French writing time using AZERTY exclusively

Type real content: Practice French emails, journal entries, social media posts rather than meaningless typing drills. Real writing maintains motivation while building skills

Embrace errors: Mistakes are inevitable and necessary for learning. Accept temporarily slower, error-filled typing as investment in long-term fluency

Study glossary — keyboard vocabulary