Graphite keyboard layout
Graphite is a 2023 general-purpose layout tuned for rolls, hand alternation and very few redirects, with punctuation reworked for writing and code.
- Created by
- Richard Davison
- rdavison
- Year
- 2023
- Finger travel
- −45%
- vs QWERTY
- Home row
- 67%
- of letters, QWERTY 37%
The layout
Graphite, with its reworked punctuation and Shift pairs for writers and programmers.
Graphite is typed with standard touch-typing fingering on a row-staggered keyboard.
How Graphite measures
Graphite typed on 23,331 words of English and compared with QWERTY.
History
- 2023Richard Davison generates Graphite with Oxeylyzer, whose default settings produce Sturdy, after changing it to filter out letter pairs he dislikes.
- ThenAfter months of daily use he reverts nearly all of his own swaps, and reworks the punctuation for writers and programmers.
Design goal: An out-of-the-box layout with high alternation and rolls, a balanced heatmap, and few stretches, scissors and redirects.
Pros
- Extremely few redirects, which its creator calls ultralow.
- Programmer-friendly punctuation, with comfortable arrows and operators.
- Tested for months in daily use before release.
Cons
- Punctuation and its Shift pairs are heavily rearranged, so it needs a proper installed layout, not key remapping.
- Its creator lists a few awkward pairs, such as BR, PH and SC.
- N sits on the left pinky, and the right hand does a little more of the work.
Graphite compared
Against QWERTY and other modern optimised layouts, ranked by finger travel per 1,000 words.
| Layout | Finger travel | vs QWERTY | Home row | Same finger | Alternation | Left hand |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gallium Rowstag | 71.6 m | −45% | 67% | 0.9% | 66% | 48% |
| APT | 71.7 m | −45% | 65% | 1.3% | 61% | 48% |
| Nerps | 71.8 m | −45% | 67% | 1.2% | 66% | 48% |
| GraphiteTHIS PAGE | 72.0 m | −45% | 67% | 0.9% | 66% | 48% |
| Hands Down Neu | 75.3 m | −42% | 65% | 1.0% | 68% | 51% |
| Semimak | 75.3 m | −42% | 64% | 0.9% | 64% | 47% |
| Sturdy | 76.1 m | −41% | 63% | 1.0% | 61% | 44% |
| QWERTY | 130.0 m | — | 37% | 6.5% | 55% | 57% |
Graphite was created by Richard Davison (rdavison) in 2023.
It moves your fingers less. On 23,331 words of English, finger travel was −45% against QWERTY, 67% of letters landed on the home row against QWERTY’s 37%, and same-finger pairs were 0.9% against 6.5%. Less movement does not guarantee more speed, and switching takes weeks of practice.
Graphite is typed with standard touch-typing fingering on a row-staggered keyboard.
Yes. Choose Graphite as your keyboard layout and the on-screen keyboard and hands show where every key is.