I Tried 5 AI Keyboards on Android So You Don't Have To

I Tried 5 AI Keyboards on Android So You Don't Have To

I've tried a lot of AI apps.

Most of them are impressive for about ten minutes.

Then you forget they exist.

An AI keyboard is a little different, though.

You use your keyboard constantly. WhatsApp, Gmail, Instagram, Chrome, Notes — basically anywhere you have to type something.

So I wanted to answer a fairly simple question:

Are AI keyboards actually useful, or are we just putting the word "AI" on keyboards that were already pretty good?

I decided to find out.

For about two weeks, I switched between five Android keyboards: Gboard, Microsoft SwiftKey, CleverType, Yaps, and FlickReply.

And yes, there's an obvious problem with this test.

I work on FlickReply.

So before anyone thinks this is secretly a 1,400-word advertisement for my own keyboard, let me say this upfront: FlickReply didn't automatically win everything.

There were things I liked more about the other keyboards.

There were also things that annoyed me enough to uninstall some of them.

And, slightly embarrassingly, I actually removed FlickReply from my phone during the test.

Twice.

Here's what happened.

How I Tested Them

I didn't install five keyboards, tap every button once, and call it a comparison.

I used each one as my everyday keyboard.

I gave each roughly two days before switching.

I used the same apps as much as possible:

WhatsApp Gmail Instagram Chrome Notes

And I wasn't sitting at a desk doing carefully prepared tests.

I typed while working.

I replied to messages half asleep in the morning.

I wrote emails when I was supposed to be doing other things.

I typed one-handed while eating.

Basically, normal phone use.

The question I kept coming back to wasn't:

"Which keyboard has the most AI features?"

That doesn't really matter.

The question was:

"Does this make typing less annoying?"

Because that's what I actually want from a keyboard.

Gboard: The One You Keep Coming Back To

Let's start with Gboard.

It's probably the easiest keyboard to recommend to someone who doesn't want to think about keyboards at all.

It works.

It's fast.

The swipe typing is ridiculously good.

I've been using swipe typing for years, and Gboard still gets surprisingly close to what I'm trying to type even when my thumb is moving across the screen like it has somewhere important to be.

The emoji search is also better than it has any right to be.

Type "shrug" and it finds the shrug emoji.

Fine.

I'll admit it.

That's useful.

What I Liked

The biggest advantage is that everything feels familiar.

There isn't much of a learning curve.

You install it, type normally, and get on with your day.

The predictions are solid, swipe typing is excellent, and the keyboard generally stays out of the way.

What Bothered Me

The AI side didn't impress me nearly as much.

Smart Reply can be useful in certain situations, but it depends heavily on the app you're using.

When I was typing something like:

"hey sorry i didnt get bak to u yesterday was swamped"

Gboard basically said:

"You spelled 'bak' wrong."

Fair enough.

But I wanted more than spell-checking.

I wanted something that understood what I was trying to say and helped me turn it into an actual message.

My Verdict

Great keyboard. Average AI assistant.

If you don't care about AI writing features, Gboard is still one of the easiest choices.

It's the Honda Civic of keyboards.

Not exciting.

Not trying to impress you.

Just gets you where you're going.

SwiftKey: Surprisingly Good Predictions, Slightly Too Much Microsoft

Next up was Microsoft SwiftKey.

I've always liked SwiftKey's predictions.

After using it for a while, it starts picking up on the weird little things you type repeatedly.

Words you misspell.

Phrases you use.

The way you normally construct sentences.

That part is genuinely good.

What I Liked

The predictions were probably the closest competition to Gboard for me.

It felt like the keyboard was paying attention.

Microsoft has also added Copilot, which makes sense on paper.

Microsoft has Word, Outlook, Teams and a huge amount of experience with writing software, so putting an AI writing assistant into the keyboard seems like an obvious move.

What Bothered Me

The setup felt heavier than it needed to be.

I already had a Microsoft account, but getting everything connected still felt like a little journey.

And once I got to the rewriting tools, I found myself waiting more than I expected.

Select text.

Open the AI option.

Wait.

Choose a rewrite.

Go back.

Maybe I'm impatient.

Probably.

But when I'm replying to someone on my phone, I don't want a five-step process for changing one sentence.

There's also something about some of the AI writing suggestions that feels very... Microsoft.

You know what I mean.

Everything is polished.

Everything is professional.

Everything sounds like someone is about to schedule a meeting about the meeting.

My Verdict

Very good keyboard. Useful AI. Not my favorite workflow.

If you're already heavily invested in Microsoft's ecosystem, SwiftKey makes a lot of sense.

For everyone else, I'd try a few options before committing.

CleverType: The AI Is Good. The Workflow Isn't Always.

CleverType was interesting because the AI writing itself is genuinely good.

When I asked it to rewrite something, it usually understood what I was trying to fix.

That sounds obvious, but it's not.

A lot of AI writing tools see a sentence that's slightly awkward and turn it into something that sounds like a company press release.

CleverType was better at keeping the original meaning.

At one point I had written an email where I was trying to apologize for a delay.

My original version sounded defensive.

I didn't notice it until I read it back.

The rewrite was much better.

Same message.

Different feeling.

That's exactly the sort of thing AI should be good at.

The Problem

The subscription prompts started getting annoying.

The free version lets you try things, but eventually you start running into limitations.

That's understandable. Somebody has to pay for servers.

But as a user, it changes how you interact with the app.

You start thinking:

"Do I really want to use this feature, or am I going to hit another paywall?"

The other issue was context.

For some smart reply situations, I found myself manually providing information about the conversation.

And that's where I got stuck.

If I have to copy a conversation, paste it somewhere, explain what I want, generate a response, and then paste it back...

I'm basically using ChatGPT.

I wanted the keyboard to be the shortcut.

My Verdict

Very capable AI writing. A less convenient keyboard experience.

I'd consider CleverType if writing quality was my number-one priority and I didn't mind paying for it.

Yaps: Really Interesting If Privacy Is Your Priority

Yaps took a completely different approach.

Privacy is a major part of its pitch, and honestly, I appreciated that.

A keyboard sees a ridiculous amount of information.

Messages.

Emails.

Passwords sometimes.

Searches.

Private conversations.

That's a lot of trust to give an app.

So having a keyboard that takes privacy seriously is a good thing.

What I Liked

The privacy controls were much easier to understand than I expected.

I didn't have to dig through ten different menus to figure out what was happening.

That gave me confidence.

What Didn't Work for Me

The problem was convenience.

For some smart reply features, I had to provide the context myself.

For example:

"My friend asked whether I want Thai or Italian for dinner."

Then I would get suggestions.

That's useful.

But also...

I could just type:

"Thai. Definitely Thai."

And send it.

There was another issue.

The interface felt busy.

There were buttons everywhere, and after a while I found myself looking for the thing I actually wanted.

Maybe I'd get used to it.

But when I'm sending a two-line WhatsApp message, I don't want my keyboard to feel like the dashboard of a spaceship.

My Verdict

Very interesting for privacy-conscious users. Less convincing for me as an everyday AI keyboard.

FlickReply: Yes, I Know This One Is Mine

Now we get to the awkward part.

FlickReply.

I work on it.

So I'm not going to pretend I'm an unbiased reviewer.

I'm not.

I also don't think pretending otherwise helps anyone.

In fact, I uninstalled FlickReply during this test.

The first time was because I felt the polish feature wasn't fast enough for my own expectations.

I went back to Gboard.

Then I realized I was doing something pretty ridiculous.

I was testing our keyboard while refusing to actually use it.

So I installed it again.

And this time I stopped looking at features and started using it normally.

That's when the smart replies started making sense to me.

The WhatsApp Test That Changed My Mind

A friend sent me this:

"Dude, are we still on for Saturday? Also Sarah said she might come but she's not sure yet."

Normally I'd read it.

Put my phone down.

Pick it up again.

Think about what to say.

Type something.

Delete it.

Type it again.

You know the routine.

With FlickReply, I tapped the AI option and selected a casual tone.

The suggestion was roughly:

"Yeah, Saturday works. Tell Sarah to let us know by Thursday so we can book the right table."

I didn't use it word-for-word.

I changed a couple of things.

But the important part was that it gave me a starting point that actually made sense.

That's what I wanted.

Not an essay.

Not a perfect AI-generated response.

Just something close enough that I could tap it, adjust it, and move on.

It took a couple of seconds.

That saved me more time than I expected.

The Polish Feature Was More Useful Than I Thought

I used to think "rewrite this" features were mostly gimmicks.

Then I started using one regularly.

I had another email sitting in my drafts that basically said:

"hey sorry i didnt get bak to u yesterday was swamped"

It was honest.

It was also not exactly the email I wanted to send to a client.

I ran it through the polish option.

It gave me a few versions.

One was too formal.

One was too wordy.

The middle option was pretty much right.

I changed a couple of words and sent it.

Did the client respond faster because of the improved email?

Honestly, I have no idea.

Maybe.

Maybe they were just free at the time.

I'm not going to pretend one email proves anything.

But the message definitely looked better than what I originally wrote.

And that's the part I care about.

So Which AI Keyboard Is Actually Best?

This depends on what you want.

If you want a keyboard that simply works and you don't particularly care about AI writing, Gboard is still an excellent choice.

If you're already heavily invested in Microsoft's ecosystem, SwiftKey is worth trying.

If you care mostly about sophisticated AI rewriting and don't mind a subscription, CleverType is interesting.

If privacy is the thing you care about most, Yaps deserves a look.

And if you want AI assistance that feels like part of the keyboard rather than another app you have to jump into, FlickReply is the one I'd try.

Yes, I'm biased.

I told you that already.

My Quick Comparison Feature Gboard SwiftKey CleverType Yaps FlickReply Smart replies Good in supported apps Good Good Context required Strong Grammar help Basic Good Excellent Good Strong Rewriting Limited Copilot Excellent Good Strong Tone controls Limited Available Good Limited Multiple tones Works across apps Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Ease of use Excellent Excellent Good Average Good Privacy focus Standard Google policies Microsoft policies Cloud-based Privacy-focused Privacy options Price Free Free Freemium Freemium Free + optional paid

Features and availability can change as these apps are updated.

What I Would Actually Install

After two weeks of switching keyboards, I expected to go back to Gboard.

Honestly, it would have been the easiest choice.

It's familiar.

It's fast.

It works.

But I ended up keeping FlickReply installed.

Not because it's perfect.

It isn't.

There are still things I'd change. Some AI suggestions miss the tone occasionally. Some features are still being improved. And I'm sure I'll find another annoying little bug the next time I use it.

That's normal with software.

What made me keep it was simple:

I was actually using the AI features.

I wasn't opening them just to test them.

I was using them while messaging people.

And that, for me, is the difference between an AI feature that's interesting and one that's genuinely useful.

The Bottom Line

You don't need an AI keyboard.

That's probably the first thing you should know.

Gboard is already good enough for millions of people. If you're happy with it, there's no reason to change just because somebody put "AI" on another keyboard.

But if you regularly write messages, emails, social posts, or work communication from your phone, an AI keyboard can remove some surprisingly annoying little tasks.

Fixing a sentence.

Changing the tone.

Coming up with a reply.

Making a message shorter.

Finding the right words when your brain has decided it has had enough for the day.

Those things don't sound huge individually.

But you do them dozens of times.

That's where an AI keyboard starts earning its place.

And if you want to see whether FlickReply works for you, give it a try.

If you hate it, uninstall it.

I've already done that myself.

Twice.

Try FlickReply and see if it fits the way you type.