Best Mechanical Keyboards For Gaming In 2022

We, as gamers, have poured all of our knowledge into top notch buying guides: gaming chairs, gaming desks, excellent mouse pads for gaming, gaming headsets, you name it. The most important weapon in your gaming arsenal supports you throughout having a bad mouse or a crummy screen resolution: your keyboard is the connection between you, and the digital world two feet before your eyes. From care down to a one-versus-one on mechanical and membrane, it’s all here.

How We Chose Our Selection of Gaming Keyboards

Price - Gaming PC hardware can be very expensive as time goes on, we’re preaching to the choir here. However, grabbing an ergonomic gaming keyboard or a fantastic RGB keyboard doesn’t have to drain your wallet. We’re avoiding those insanely high-priced items when we can, though there are a few brands that have such a high quality that they simply can’t be ignored.

Reviews - User reviews help us determine our final batch before we order and test them, like a preliminary round. User reviews offer insight into actual use instead of just looking at pretty marketing photos and snappy copywriting. In the tech space, you’re definitely going to run into those gents that don’t really know what they’re doing, but those are few and far between, and you’ll easily be able to spot them.

Brands - Gamers are intelligent, they know the ins and outs of all their specs and requirements (if you don’t, we’ve laid them out below). Brands don’t have a massive market to try and dupe: they need to stick to their guns, and actually offer quality above all else. Brands are absolutely critical in making the final decision, in our humble opinion.

Features To Look for in Mechanical Gaming Keyboards

Build Quality - Most notably, the actual materials used. Right now, as I type this up, I’m sitting on our number four selection, the SteelSeries Apex model. It’s got a sturdy aluminum frame, excellent housing on the mechanical switches, and has a great weight to it. I type quickly, and it’s not sputtering across the top of my desk. Whether you’re a keyboard warrior in the guild chat or you smash down when you’re in hot pursuit of your rivals, you need it to stay in place (and not give out on you).

Backlight - Setting up an immersive environment, whether you’re going single or tri-screen for your gaming dojo, means that you need to really set the tone. You have the light from your gaming mouse, your screen, and your keyboard, and it sets a fantastic president for how the rest of your gaming session is going to go. Not only that, but it helps when you hop into the chat with your mates so you can actually see what you’re typing out, and is a full-on necessity when interacting with your programmable keys.

Programmable Keys - When you get into more involved games like World of Warcraft or Diablo III (I know it’s the worst of the series, but I can’t help myself), you’re going to need programmable keys. It turns mundane tasks into simple commands, and takes the monotony out of certain gameplay elements. Not only that, but I have some of my keys set to launch games by tapping one, two, waiting for the screen and hitting the third one. Makes for a much quicker startup.

Ghosting - Button mashing might have worked on your Nintendo 64, but it isn’t going to work here. Ghosting, for those of you who don’t already know, is when multiple keys are pressed and only some of them work. For example, if I press down on eight different keys at the same time right now, they will all work, because I don’t have low ghosting on my keyboard. If it’s programmable or controllable, even better. Some of this comes down to preference, but if you’re a fast typer, then ghosting won’t be your friend.

Profiles - It’s not like Chrome where you’re actually switching in and out of your multiple personas. You have five different profiles (primarily) on keyboards: curved backplane, staircase, contoured keys, flat, and chiclet. If you’re on a laptop right now and you have those flat keys with membrane switches, those are chiclet. Flat keys are keyboard that need to be propped up or they just don’t work. Staircase profiles have an ascension built into the frame. Contoured keys have a different height depending on where it is on the board, giving it a natural feel, and lastly a curved backplane is used in a lot of ergonomic gaming keyboard models to give you better control if your hands hover over the keys.

Mechanical vs. Membrane - We’re here for mechanical keyboards for a ton of reasons, but we just wanted to list the primary aspects behind why mechanical will always beat membrane on everything except price.

1. Self Repair: Your switch burns out, and you can buy new switches to replace them with. If a key dies on your membrane keyboard, it’s just burned out and gone. There’s no use trying to replace it, because it’s all one network that’s built into the base of the keyboard.

2. Heavier Models: The whole appeal of membrane keyboards is being lightweight, flat, simple to use. However, you’re in the nitty gritty of your current gaming universe, and you need a weighted keyboard to sit still while you rage onward.

3. Built to Last: Apart from being heavier, they’re built more soundly. Mechanical keyboards are the go-tos for people who type a lot for work, and people who game ‘til their heart’s content. They need to last, because you’re making an investment, not a purchase.

Connectivity - While mechanical keyboards can be wireless, it does eat up the battery fairly quickly. You have 104+ keys all running off the same power source, instead of a bunch of small membranes pushing tiny electrical signals. That’s why you’ll see most mechanical gaming keyboards have a USB connection. Connectivity is a preference, but a hardwired connection (and mechanical keyboards in general) have a much faster connection speed, allowing your WPM to soar instead of suffer.

Accessories - This is basically if it includes extra plates for you to change your color filter or case frame, switch testers if you’re into fixing and tinkering with your keyboards, and so on. These don’t often come with standard purchases, but are definitely something you need to be on the lookout for.

Switches - One sign of a good quality keyboard is using Cherry MX switches, which come in multiple colors. You’ll see when you go to a mechanical gaming keyboard sales page, displayed in different colors in the description. Cherry Corporation is the oldest keyboard manufacturer in business, dating back to 1967, and they make good on their switches. Different switches, marked by colors, have different actuation ratings, which we’ll get into throughout this guide.

Types of Gaming Keyboards

Mechanical - Utilizes mechanical switches instead of membrane pads, traditionally comes a lot heavier and bulkier than a membrane keyboard. In short, a mechanical keyboard is designed to never fail you, and be with you through years and years of use. Even lower-grade mechanical keyboards can last you for ages if you’re careful and pop out switches. These are an investment, not a purchase.

Membrane - Instead of using individual switches, membrane keyboards are often a lot quieter, and a lot softer when you let the key land. If you’re at the computer a lot, you probably find solace in the clicking of the switches when you tap a key like a lot of us do. It provides rhythm, confirmation that you actually hit the key. Membrane keyboards have their place, but definitely not for gaming.

What Are Macros?

Macros used to be highly frowned upon in MMORPG games (and mostly still are). These are dumbed-down versions of macro programs, keys that will follow a sequence of commands that your keyboard executes. Assigning one macro key to perform fifty functions is possible with a bit of coding knowledge and reprogramming with guides and tutorials available from the keyboard manufacturer, and while they’re a bit involved, can help you with mundane tasks.

The primary reason why macros aren’t the biggest hitter on our list and final decision-making process is because they’re not well-liked in the gaming community. Having a macro in an RPG game is basically cheating, and though macros do have their place for other mundane tasks, they’re not necessarily a major selling point.

Mechanical Gaming Keyboard FAQs

Q: Do I Need a Keyboard With RGB Lighting?

A: It’s an entirely different experience, I’ll tell you that. If you’ve never used a keyboard with RGB lighting, you’re living in the dark. RGB lighting allows you to do a volley of things that your standard keyboard just can’t keep up with, such as:

• Better Nighttime Use: If you can’t keep the kitchen or office light on because it’s bothering your spouse, then good news: you don’t have to turn it on just to see your keyboard. Leave the light off in the common room so you don’t bother the flatmates, things of that sort. Besides that, your eyes strain when you have a light source and the LED from your screen both flashing in your eyes, so this cuts down on additional strain.
• They’re Associated with Quality: RGB lighting isn’t exactly cheap. Companies that produce low-quality keyboards aren’t going to bother throwing RGB lighting in, because if it breaks and it’s under warranty, they have to adhere to said warranty. Manufacturers like SteelSeries put RGB lighting their keyboards with the full knowledge that their superior quality build won’t be crossing through their warranty department anytime soon. They know that a better build is better for business, and cheap brands usually don’t touch this concept.
• Tactical Use: You can set up different modes to light up specific rows (hotkeys) and add some extra light on the WASD setup, which can be far more tactical and beneficial when you’re trying to keep your eye on the prize, and you can’t imagine how bad it would be if your hands slipped or you pressed the wrong keys at the wrong time.

Q: Are Gaming Keyboards Good for Typing?

A: This entire guide is being typed up on a mechanical keyboard. As someone who spends many hours each week curating and crafting excellent buying guides here on Gear Hungry, I can assure you that nothing is better than a mechanical keyboard. The keys on my laptop have barely been touched, no wear and tear marks despite having it for three years. It’s a membrane keyboard, and it just doesn’t work for me.

That being said, there are some adjustments you’ll have to endure if you switch from a standard membrane to an improved mechanical keyboard. For one, you’ll find your hands hovering over it a lot more instead of you leaning your arms on the desk. The kays are larger than standard keyboards, so you’ll need to be a bit more precise with your placement. I do have to say though, I have a lot less errors on a mechanical keyboard since it’s not just a bunch of keys mashed together to fit some “slim line” keyboard model.

You get better accuracy, no ghosting (excellent for those with a sky-high WPM), and an audible click with each letter. You get in a better rhythm, but keep in mind that this might bother coworkers if you’re thinking about bringing one of these into work in a tight-knit space.

Q: Which Switch is Best for Gaming?

A: Cherry MX brown is often the go-to for an excellent gaming experience, though more Cherry switches will work wonders compared to what you’re used to gaming on. These switches come with a tactile bump, and a decent actuation force if you need to switch from work to play in a snap.

We’ll get more into actuation points in a moment to better describe the switches. Brown switches basically give you a decent clicking sound without being overpowering, and allow you to switch in between tasks fairly easily.

Q: What is Actuation Point?

A: Your actuation point is basically the metric between ghosting and anti-ghosting. A better actuation point helps evade ghosting, which is when you press too many keys at one time and a few of the entries “ghost” on you, or don’t appear on-screen. Ghosting is a problem you can usually endure when typing, but when you’re gaming and relying on a specific command or function to be carried out, it’s quite literally a nightmare-and-a-half.

Your actuation force and its value can be easily determined by just dissecting its name. Actual force, and the point that it meets your mechanical keyboard switch to determine “Yes, this is a valid entry,” and send it off to the computer to actually appear on-screen.

In short, the lower the actuation, the less pressure applied by the user to receive the desired end result. If you’re hard on your keyboard, if you type like a mad man, a low actuation might actually be a bad thing for you. It relies on more “gentle” users to tap the keys lightly, and personally, my fingers come crashing down like lightning on every key, so I need a denser actuation point.

Q: What is Anti-Ghost?

A: Anti-ghost features are a greater capacity in your keyboard to remove the possibility of a key “ghosting” on you. If I hit a dozen keys right now, I’m going to get every single key entered in one fell swoop onto my word processor document. However, a keyboard without anti-ghosting features is going to screw me over.

In that same instance, a mechanical gaming keyboard with no anti-ghosting feature would only input a certain number of those dozen keys, and it doesn’t necessarily mean it will be the first X amount that you typed. Think of it like this: your keyboard doesn’t have enough RAM to run, and closes out lesser tasks to make room for others. It’s overloading, essentially.

Q: Do Mechanical Keyboards Help with Carpal Tunnel?

A: It depends on the user, but in my case, I have RA and it helps to lessen flare-ups when I use a mechanical keyboard. Because the keys are never in a flat or chiclet-style layout, there’s a much more ergonomic feel when I’m typing that doesn’t mess with my hands. My wrists have taken a lot of damage as time’s gone on, and even though my arms have to hover a hit, there’s a lot less inflammation and pain when I use a mechanical keyboard.

For those of you with carpal tunnel, some of the same basic principles will apply. You’ll notice that after you use a mechanical keyboard for a full day’s work, you’re going to be a bit sore in the forearms, and that’s okay. You’re taking all of this strain out of your joints, which don’t build muscle and repair in the same way that other parts of your body do. Less strain on them means that the pressure is evening out across your forearm, and reduces inflammation altogether.

Q: What Does Key Rollover Mean?

A: It all plays into actuation, and anti-ghosting technology. Key rollover means that each individual key is being heard. With membrane keyboards, you have a collective touch pad along the bottom that these keys are hitting: it’s all one unit, feeding information to the computer in a single shot.

With mechanical keyboards, each switch is individually working, not relying on a central hub. Yes, it sends the information through the same connectivity method as the others, but it’s not relying on one single source to process and send that data out. Basically, you get mini bouts of RAM for each key, so they can’t be overloaded even with an abnormally high WPM or some serious button mashing.