IPA Typing Keyboard

A privacy-focused iOS keyboard for typing International Phonetic Alphabet symbols.

View the Project on GitHub minhpnz/ipa-keyboard

Support

Quick start

  1. Open IPA Typing Keyboard after installing
  2. Tap Open Settings on the Setup tab
  3. In iOS Settings: General → Keyboard → Keyboards → Add New Keyboard → IPA Typing Keyboard
  4. Return to the app, tap the Try it here field
  5. Press the 🌐 globe key on the keyboard to switch to IPA Typing Keyboard
  6. Long-press any of the dotted letters (a, e, i, o, u, t, s, d, c, n, z) to pick an IPA variant

FAQ

The keyboard doesn’t appear after I add it

Switch keyboards using the 🌐 globe key in any text field. iOS does not automatically show a new keyboard until you select it with the globe key. If the globe key is missing, you can also touch and hold the emoji key, then choose the keyboard from the list.

I don’t see all IPA symbols

Most IPA characters live behind long-press popovers on the dotted letters: a, e, i, o, u (vowels), and t, s, d, c, n, z (consonants). Long-press one, hold, then slide your finger to the variant you want.

For a full list of supported symbols, open the Reference tab in the app — tap any symbol to copy it to the clipboard.

Why is there no haptic feedback / vibration when I long-press?

iOS restricts haptic feedback in keyboard extensions to keyboards with Full Access enabled. Because IPA Typing Keyboard does not request Full Access (so we can guarantee that none of your typed text ever leaves your device), iOS may silently disable haptics. A subtle selection tick may still fire on some devices.

If you want the standard iOS keyboard haptic intensity, that requires trusting the keyboard with Full Access — a trade-off we deliberately declined for v1.

Why doesn’t the popover appear above the top-row keys (E, T, U, I, O)?

For v1, the long-press popover for top-row keys appears at the top edge of the keyboard area, overlapping the long-pressed key. Apple’s built-in keyboard renders this popover above the keyboard frame, into the host app’s display area; matching that exactly is on our v1.1 roadmap.

Does the keyboard work in landscape / on iPad?

Yes. The keyboard adapts to all iPhone widths from iPhone SE through 6.9”, and to all iPad widths including the floating iPad keyboard.

Can I sync my settings between devices?

No. The app stores no data outside your device. This is by design — there are no accounts, no cloud sync, and no analytics.

Report a bug or request a feature

Open an issue: https://github.com/minhpnz/ipa-keyboard/issues

Or email: minh.phan81299@gmail.com

Privacy

See the Privacy Policy. Short version: no data leaves your device, ever.