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How-to

How to make the iPhone keyboard bigger, or smaller

Published · 3 min read

Apple’s keyboard has no size setting. You can make it bigger by making everything bigger, or by turning the phone, and smaller by moving it to one side. A third-party keyboard can offer what Apple does not: taller keys and nothing else changed.

In short. For bigger keys on Apple’s keyboard, turn on Display Zoom: Settings › Appearance › Display Zoom › Larger Text in iOS 27, then Use Zoomed. It enlarges the whole screen, not only the keyboard. Turning the phone sideways gives wider keys. For a smaller keyboard, touch and hold the emoji or globe key and pick a one-handed layout.

Bigger, with Apple’s keyboard

  • Display Zoom. In iOS 27 go to Settings › Appearance › Display Zoom, choose Larger Text, tap Done and then Use Zoomed (in iOS 26 it is under Display & Brightness). Icons, buttons and the keyboard all grow, so less fits on screen. Not every model offers it.
  • Landscape. Turn the phone sideways for wider keys. The keyboard then covers more of the screen.
  • Bold Text. Under Settings › Accessibility › Display & Text Size. The keys stay the same size, but heavier letters can be easier to hit and read.

The Larger Text slider changes the text inside apps, not the keyboard.

Smaller, for one hand

Touch and hold the emoji or globe key and tap a one-handed layout: the keys move towards your thumb on the left or the right. Tap the empty strip on the other side to put it back in the middle.

A keyboard with a height setting

Some third-party keyboards let you set the height of the keys on its own, without zooming the rest of the phone. In Pilcrow it is Settings › Size & extra keys › Height: compact, standard or tall. The layout stays the one you know; only the keys change height, and the live preview shows the difference before you leave the page.

Three keyboard heightsThe same keyboard drawn compact, standard and tall, with taller keys each time. q w e r t y u i o p a s d f g h j k l ⇧ ⌫ z x c v b n m 123 ⏎ Compact q w e r t y u i o p a s d f g h j k l ⇧ ⌫ z x c v b n m 123 ⏎ Standard q w e r t y u i o p a s d f g h j k l ⇧ ⌫ z x c v b n m 123 ⏎ Tall
Compact, standard and tall: the rows keep their layout, the keys change height. Drawn to show the idea, not to scale.
  • One-handed mode moves the keyboard left or right, and a button on Pilcrow’s toolbar cycles it off, left and right.
  • Letter size in the theme editor draws the letters from 80 to 130 % of the usual, if it is the letters rather than the keys you want bigger.

The height setting and one-handed mode stay free after the three free days, because Apple’s own keyboard has comparable options.

Last checked October 2026 against Apple’s iPhone User Guide for iOS 27. If anything here is out of date, write to info@pilcrowtype.com.

Sources

  1. Apple, Adjust iPhone display and text settings
  2. Apple, Make text easier to read on iPhone
  3. Apple, Type with the onscreen keyboard on iPhone
  4. Apple, Add or change keyboards on iPhone

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