How to set up Sticky and Slow Keys on Mac easily

Apple devices have a variety of accessibility features, which not only facilitates people with disabilities to use their Mac, but also optimizes typing processes, customizes voice preferences, etc. This article will explain slow and sticky keys on Mac: features, common use cases, and enable/disable methods.

What are the slow keys on Mac?

Slow keys are a convenient auxiliary function built into macOS, which can change the length of time required for the key-holding system to register the key operation.

It is especially useful for people with limited flexibility, unable to repeat keys, and children who are learning to type, and is also a clever tool to adjust the typing process! For example, if you type fast but are prone to errors, you can use the slow key to force yourself to slow down while typing.

What are the sticky keys on Mac?

Sticky keys on MacBook help simplify pressing multiple keys simultaneously. With this accessibility enabled, you can press keys one by one to trigger the action without pressing four or five keys at the same time with your fingers. Even some of the most practical keyboard shortcuts on MacBooks can be laborious to start.

How to enable slow keys on your Mac

Now, let's go back to the slow key. There are several ways to enable slow keys, the most common one is to enter "System Settings":

1. Click the Apple menu > select "System Settings".
2. In Accessibility > Keyboard (under the Motor section).
3. Enable "Slow Key".

Alternatively, you can use the Accessibility Shortcut Keys feature to enable/disable the slow key:

1. Press the Touch ID button three times.
2. Select or deselect Slow Keys under Motor in the Accessibility Shortcut Keys window.
3. Click "Done".

You can also use Option Command F5 Open the Accessibility Shortcut Key menu.

Create a custom key sequence

While Apple offers this feature nicely, you can take it to the next level.

BetterTouchTool can help you assign custom key sequences to operations with minimum/maximum pause time between custom keys. Why use it? Suppose you want to use custom shortcut keys to trigger the window resize or screenshot feature. BetterTouchTool allows you to set any action with a custom trigger right away.

Here is how to trigger an operation using a key sequence:

1. Install and open BetterTouchTool and select "Key Sequence/Type Word" from the drop-down menu at the top.
2. Click the plus button to record the key sequence.
3. Click "Start Recording" and type the key. Adjust the minimum pause time before the first key and the maximum pause time between the keys and any other settings you want to change >Save.

4. Assign the action to the trigger by clicking the plus button in the second part.

Adjust Mac keyboard response speed

Here are the ways you can use the slow key feature to select the most comfortable keyboard response speed:

1. After enabling the slow key, open System Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard.
2. Click "i" or "Options" next to "Slow Key".
3. Move the slider to change the acceptance delay.

If you stick with these settings for a while and realize that you need to reduce the delay time, the slow key settings are easy to adjust, so you can go back and customize the delay at any time, and even disable the slow key on your Mac.

Tip: If you want to improve your typing skills, there are many applications that can help, whether it’s speed, form, or other things you want to master. Applications like KeyKey Typing Tutor and Rocket Typist are great starting points:

• KeyKey is a typing coach that guides you through some simple typing exercises every day. Guaranteed: Your typing speed will double within one month.
• Rocket Typist is another useful tool that you can use to create snippets of text that can be called with simple short abbreviations.

How to turn off slow keys on Mac

Unless you use it as an accessibility tool, slow key response speeds can end up being frustrating.

If you decide to disable the slow key on your Mac, you can follow the same steps as enabling the slow key:

1. Click Apple menu > System Settings.
2. Select Accessibility > Keyboard.
3. Turn off the "Slow Key".

Alternatively, press the Option Command F5 on the keyboard, or press the Touch ID button three times, and deselect the Slow Key under Motor.

If you don't remember enabling the slow key on your Mac, but noticed a keyboard lag, you might have enabled it unexpectedly. Now you know how to fix it.

Note: However, if only some keys are lagging, it may be unrelated to slow keys. Try the recommended troubleshooting technology or contact an Apple certified service center for repair. Before you fix it, you can use Lacona, an app that allows you to trigger common actions with the words you typed. For example, if you can't use the command key, so you can't press Command Shift 4 To take a screenshot, you just type "screenshot" in Lacona.

Please read also:

• Reverse color on Mac
• How to control Home on Mac
• How to enable reading text on your Mac
• Mac cursor disappears

How to enable and disable sticky keys

Sticky keys on MacBook simplify the task of pressing multiple keys simultaneously to run commands or trigger actions. This means that when the sticky key is on, you can press the key one by one and the system will record it as part of a single command.

Here's how to enable sticky keys on your Mac:

1. Click Apple menu > System Settings.
2. Go to Accessibility > Keyboard.
3. Enable or disable Sticky Key.

Note that you can choose to custom sticky keys:

1. Click the Options or i button next to "Sticky Key".
2. Customize the following options:

• If you don't want the sticky key to be enabled all the time, enable "Press Shift key five times to toggle sticky keys".
• Let your Mac "beep when setting the modifier keys".
• Choose whether you want to display the keys you pressed on the screen and where you want them to be displayed.

Next, we have to learn how to turn off sticky keys. Basically, you should go to the Accessibility section in System Settings again and disable Sticky Key.

If you don't want to disable this feature completely, go to your sticky key settings ("i") and enable the option to press the Shift key five times to turn the sticky key on and off.

How to manage slow and sticky keys [Solved]

If you use them with useful Mac apps that help improve typing speeds and customize the shortcuts you use, you can take advantage of the keyboard accessibility.

Good news? The applications KeyKey Typing Tutor, Rocket Typist, BetterTouchTool, and Lacona, described in this article, are available for free through the 7-day trial of Setapp. The platform has over 250 different categories of iOS and macOS applications – productivity, creativity, AI, work, and more. You can get all of these apps under a single subscription plan.

Frequently Asked Questions

How to get rid of slow keys on your Mac?

To get rid of slow keys on your Mac, go to your System Settings > Click Accessibility > Keyboard (under Motor). There you can turn off the "Slow Key".

What does slow keys mean on Mac?

The Slow key is an accessibility feature that allows you to change the length of time it takes for the key-hold system to register a key-press operation.

How to turn off sticky keys?

To turn off the sticky key, go to System Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard. There, you have the option to turn off Sticky Key.

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