As established, the QWERTY layout was designed in the 1870s to solve a mechanical jamming issue on early typewriters. Decades later, ergonomic researchers realized that QWERTY is objectively terrible for touch typing. It forces your fingers to travel massive distances to type even the most common English words.
This sparked the creation of alternative keyboard layouts aimed purely at ergonomics and speed, the two most famous being Dvorak and Colemak.
But if you already type 80 WPM on QWERTY, is it worth the pain of switching? Let's break down the contenders.
The Contenders
Dvorak Simplified Keyboard (1936)
August Dvorak designed his layout with two simple rules:
- Maximize alternating hands while typing words.
- Put the most common consonants on the right home row, and all vowels on the left home row.
Because of this, about 70% of typing on Dvorak occurs on the home row (compared to just 32% on QWERTY).
Colemak (2006)
Shai Coleman designed Colemak specifically to be easier to learn than Dvorak. Instead of scrambling the whole board, Colemak changes only 17 keys from QWERTY.
Crucially, it keeps the Z, X, C, and V keys in their exact QWERTY positions, meaning your vital copy/paste keyboard shortcuts remain unchanged.
Colemak boasts that 74% of typing occurs on the home row, making it technically more efficient than both Dvorak and QWERTY.
The Cost of Switching
Relearning a layout is brutal. You are fighting decades of ingrained motor cortex programming. You will drop from 80 WPM down to 10 WPM. Your fingers will physically hurt from concentrating so hard.
It generally takes:
- 2 weeks to memorize the layout.
- 1 month to reach 40 WPM.
- 3-6 months to completely surpass your old QWERTY speed.
During this transition time, your productivity as a developer will be severely impacted.
Should You Switch?
Yes, if:
- You suffer from severe, chronic wrist or finger pain (RSI) that isn't solved by an ergonomic keyboard alone. The drastic reduction in finger travel on Colemak or Dvorak is the ultimate cure.
- You are a keyboard enthusiast looking for maximum efficiency.
No, if:
- You already type 100+ WPM on QWERTY without pain. The ROI just isn't there for a 10% speed bump six months later.
- You constantly use other people's computers, pair program on shared laptops, or use public terminals.
Whichever layout you choose, remember that consistent practice with focus on high accuracy (like using tools such as TypeNCode) is what ultimately decides how fast and painlessly you type.