What are the Different Keyboard Sizes?

A keyboard's layout determines how many keys the board has and where those keys are located.

Here we are specifically talking about the ANSI layout and its variants. For those of you with ISO layouts, keep in mind the keys and sizes that are different for your region.

Layouts are often described shorthand as %, with 100% representing a full-size board with a number pad (104 keys total, generally).

Lower % means less keys (generally), so you can imagine a 96% board (like the Kira) is removing a couple keys to be more compact but retaining a vast majority.

A board without the numpad is called a TKL, ten-key-less, or 85%, as it is missing the "10-key" numpad.

From there boards keep getting smaller. 75% (like the Kono 84) has compacted the board down, but retained the F1-F12 row.

A 65% (like the WhiteFox) retains the arrow keys, but loses the F1-F12 row.

A 60% layout loses the arrow keys.

A 40% drops the number row and is mostly just alphas with a few modifier keys.

These smaller layouts access the missing keys through Fn (function) layering, often personally customized by the user (in order for them to actually remember everything).

For example, on a 40% keyboard with no numbers, the numbers 1-0 are likely under a layer (requires Fn to be held) across the top row of letters (Q through P).

Smaller layouts like 40% commonly have multiple Fn layers to accomodate all of the missing keys.