How can you type faster on a PS5 or Xbox?

On a PS5, Sony's own support page says a USB or Bluetooth keyboard is a faster way to enter text ¹. On an Xbox, we could not confirm keyboard support. The on-screen controller keyboard is the only option we could confirm, and we found no speed figure for it. We could not reach Microsoft's current keyboard page, so the Xbox hardware rules below are unverified. The console sources we read do not describe voice dictation into a text box, so the realistic gains come from a keyboard or from your phone.

A keyboard is a faster way to type on a PS5

Sony's support page covers two ways to connect a keyboard. A wired keyboard goes into a USB port. A wireless keyboard pairs over Bluetooth: put the keyboard in pairing mode, as its manual describes, then select Settings > Accessories > General > Bluetooth Accessories on the console.

Once the keyboard is connected, open Settings > Accessories > Other Accessories to set a keyboard language and two key repeat options. Key Repeat (Delay) sets how long a held key waits before it starts repeating, and Key Repeat (Rate) sets how fast it repeats. These settings matter most when you hold Backspace to delete a run of text, and they do not change how quickly you press keys.

Sony also warns that compatibility varies: "Not all devices work with your console" ². Check the keyboard's own instructions before you buy, and test it on the console before you rely on it for long messages.

A keyboard does not guarantee speed, but it puts you back on the device you already type on. In one online typing study of 136 million keystrokes, the average participant typed 51.56 words per minute ³. Those were self-selected volunteers, so the average is likely higher than for the general population. Treat it as a reference point for a physical keyboard, not a promise for every console text field, because a console game or menu may limit what you can do. For the phone comparison, read the phone typing speed guide.

Your phone can act as a PS5 keyboard

If you have no keyboard, the PS Remote Play app can use your phone instead. Its App Store listing says it lets you "enter text on your PS5 or PS4 using the keyboard on your mobile device" ⁴ ( listing).

The listing also sets requirements. You need a PlayStation Network account, a console on the latest system software, and a phone or tablet on a supported iOS or Android version. The minimum phone version differs between the two platforms, so check the listing for your device. We did not test the app's input delay, so judge it on your own connection before you use it for long text.

On an Xbox, the on-screen keyboard is the option we could confirm

Some Xbox games open an on-screen keyboard from a text-entry box. Microsoft's accessibility guideline describes Gears 5, where players right-stick click to open the keyboard ⁵. The same guideline describes Sea of Thieves, where moving focus to the text-entry box opens an on-screen keyboard ( Microsoft guideline 119).

Gamepad text entry is slow, at least in the one study we found. In a 2008 study of TwoStick, a joystick text-entry method, users started at 4.3 words per minute and reached 14.9 words per minute after five hours of practice ⁶. TwoStick is not the method Xbox uses, and the study was small. It does show how slowly a gamepad can type, even after hours of practice. Use the on-screen keyboard for short messages, not for long text.

We could not verify Xbox keyboard rules

We could not reach Microsoft's current support page on keyboards for Xbox Series X|S, so we cite no fact for which keyboards an Xbox accepts. Check that page before you buy one. Then test the keyboard in the game you play most. A keyboard that works for menus may not help in gameplay chat.

The console sources we read do not describe voice typing into a text box

The speech features we found do other jobs. PS5 Voice Command is for console control: Sony describes it as a way to "find or open games, apps and settings, capture gameplay or control media playback" ⁷. On Xbox, the text-to-speech chat pattern runs the other way from dictation: a player types into a text-entry box, and the text is read aloud to other players ⁸. For more on this, read voice typing on game consoles and TVs.

If you need to write a long message, write it on a phone or computer, where you can type or dictate, and send only the finished text to the console.

What to do, in order

1. PS5 with a keyboard: connect it by USB or pair it over Bluetooth, then set the keyboard language under Other Accessories.
2. PS5 with no keyboard: install PS Remote Play on your phone, check its requirements, and type on the phone's keyboard.
3. Xbox with a keyboard: check Microsoft's support site for compatibility, then test the keyboard in the game you play.
4. Xbox without a keyboard: use the on-screen keyboard in any game that offers one, and keep messages short.
5. Long text: draft on a phone or computer, then type only the short final version on the console.

For the broader skill, see type faster without mistakes, and for the keyboard itself, do mechanical keyboards make you type faster. For the phone version, read how to type faster on a phone. Speed is usually reported in words per minute, so compare numbers only when the tests used the same kind of text.