Switch keyboard from English to German: How to do it

There is one big difference between the English and German keyboards: the positions for X and Y are swapped. Of course, this is noticeable when writing. We'll show you how to switch the language of your keyboard.

You can easily change the language of your keyboard at any time.

QWERTY or QWERTZ: In Windows, you have two options to switch the keyboard between English and German and also other languages.

Switch keyboard from English to German: The easiest method

The fastest way to change the keyboard language is in the Windows settings:

1. Right-click the Windows icon at the bottom left and select "Settings".
2. Then click "Time and Language" and open the "Language" menu on the left.
3. Click on "Keyboard" and change the preferred system language here, the layout of your keyboard will also change from English to German.

In older versions, you can change the keyboard from English to German (and vice versa) with a key combination. To do this, simply press "Alt" + "Shift". Since this key combination is not particularly complex, it is not uncommon for users to accidentally switch the keyboard from German to English and only notice this later.

Also quite simple: switch keyboard language via taskbar

In Windows, the other way is also not complicated. In the right area of the taskbar, look for a reference to a language, for example, "En" or "De". In detail, the wording depends on the Windows generation; in Windows 10, the German language setting is displayed as "Deu". If you do not see an icon in the taskbar for the language, it is best to go to the language via the Windows settings.