Russian / Keyboard
How to type in Russian
There are two real ways to type Russian on a Latin keyboard: ЙЦУКЕН, the layout every physical Russian keyboard is printed for, and a phonetic layout, where each Latin key types the Cyrillic letter that sounds like it. Which one to learn depends entirely on whether you already read Cyrillic.
Should you start with ЙЦУКЕН or a phonetic layout?
If you are learning to read Russian, start phonetic. ЙЦУКЕН's key positions come from Russian typewriter history, not from letter sounds, so on ЙЦУКЕН the letter Ж sits under your right pinky for no reason you can reason about. On a phonetic layout the same letter sits on X, because Ж sounds like the s in "measure" and X is a decent visual and mnemonic stand-in. If you already read Cyrillic and will type on real Russian-labeled keyboards, or in Russia itself, learn ЙЦУКЕН directly instead.
How do you enable a Russian keyboard on your computer?
Windows, macOS, and most mobile operating systems all let you add a Russian input method from their system keyboard or language settings, switchable with a shortcut or menu. That changes what your physical keys actually type system-wide. Polytaipe's layout emulation works differently and needs no OS settings changed: it reads your physical key presses and remaps them to Cyrillic entirely inside the browser, so you can practice immediately.
What's the actual difference between the two layouts?
Nearly every key. See the full breakdown, key by key, on the phonetic vs ЙЦУКЕН comparison, or read the individual guides for Russian Phonetic and Russian (ЙЦУКЕН).