To help you find the best smart TV keyboard, so you can easily control your home theater, we’ve combed through dozens of models, connecting them to modern television sets and running them through their paces. While testing out these keyboards, we wanted, first and foremost, reliable wireless connectivity that could operate your TV from anywhere in the room. We were also looking for a compact form factor, plug-and-play design, and long battery life. For other types of keyboards for your office or school work, just head out to our best keyboard guide for more details.
Of the seven best smart TV keyboards on this list, the Logitech K400 Plus truly made the biggest mark, offering effortless control over the many functions of modern TVs. The K400 Plus boasts a wireless range of 33 feet, which will ensure it connects to the TV even from the back row of your home theater. It also has a large 3” touchpad, easy-to-access volume controls, and a battery life of 18 months, so you won’t be rushing out for new AAs anytime soon. The media keys are easy to use. Keep reading to learn more about the Logitech K400 Plus and the other keyboards on this list.
Top 7 Best Smart TV Keyboards
#1 Logitech K400 Plus Keyboard
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Award: Top Pick
WHY WE LIKE IT: The is a highly functional keyboard that offers unparalleled control over your smart TV, with a large 3” touchpad, easy volume control, and a simple setup, which worked immediately after we plugged the receiver into a USB port. The keyboard’s robust feature set, ease of use, and long battery life make this our top pick. It is similar to the K600, but the Logitech k600 tv keyboard is not our top pick.
- 18 months of battery life with included AAs
- Plug-and-play setup, just plug receiver into USB port
- Lengthy wireless range at 33 feet
- No backlight, harder to use in dark
- Only compatible with Windows, Chrome and Android devices
- No Bluetooth functionality
The Logitech K400 Plus is, for most users, the only smart TV keyboard you’ll ever need. The price is on the lower side, volume and other related controls are easy to access and the battery life is simply fantastic. The wireless range is also nice, with a maximum of 33 feet, so anyone with a normal-sized living area will be fine. The battery life is robust, offering 18 months of continual use, and a pair of AAs come in the package, so you’ll be good to go as soon as you open it up and plug the receiver into one of your TVs’ available USB ports. The high-end Logitech keyboard uses Unifying Receiver for plug and play, meaning no configuration, and no software is needed to set up this keyboard.
The keyboard does not have a backlight, which is only noticeable while trying to perform complex interactions in the dark. It’s easy to press play and adjust the volume in any amount of light, thanks to a smart combination of tactile buttons and a large 3” touchpad. As far as compatibility goes, it works best with Windows, Chrome, or Android devices (tablets, Android TV boxes), though we found it also functioned with Samsung’s Tizen operating system and some users have reported it works with their Mac. As for Samsung smart TVs, you should look to a Bluetooth-enabled keyboard because most Samsung TVs today have a Bluetooth function. It should be compatible with almost all of the best TVs at this point since almost all have built-in smart options.
#2 Rii 2.4GHz Mini Wireless Keyboard
Award: Honorable Mention
WHY WE LIKE IT: This keyboard is certainly a handy little product, wireless transmitting signal to a large variety of gadgets, including smart TVs, video game consoles, smartphones, and tablets, with a cute form factor that fits in the palm of your hand. This is a great keyboard for folks who place a high priority on portability, as it can easily be thrown in a backpack to use somewhere other than your living room.
- Works with a large variety of televisions and gadgets
- Backlight is the perfect brightness
- Handheld form factor is neat with many color options
- Control gestures takes a bit to get used to
- Signal range isn’t the best
- Instructions are poorly written
The Rii 2.4GHz Mini Wireless Keyboard integrates seamlessly with a large volume of operating systems, including Android, Mac OS, Windows, and Raspberry Pi, as well as XBOX and PlayStation. It is ideal for multiple devices such as PCs, laptops, Raspberry Pi 2-3, Mac OS, PS3 and PS4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One, and Google Android TV box. That said, you’ll need to check out the top keyboard and mouse for PS4, if you need a pointer, too. The keyboard is tiny, no bigger than a remote control, and comes in a variety of cool colors, which helps it fit the aesthetic of your living space. It also has a nice backlight, making nighttime use effortless. It’s even charged via a USB connection, further increasing its simplicity. It has a three-in-one multifunction; mini wireless QWERTY keyboard, TouchPad combo, and LED-backlit keys with a USB interface adapter. The touchPad combo offers multi-finger functions; one finger clicks as the left mouse function, two-finger click as the right mouse function, and double finger drag as the rolling screen.
The company advertises a signal range of 33 meters, which translates to over 100 feet, but we found, in practice, that number to be much lower, as we lost signal once or twice as we traveled around the living room, putting the actual signal range at around 20-25 feet, which isn’t bad, just lower than advertised. The best wireless keyboards are also a great option. We love it when we are watching the best shows on Netflix.
#3 Fosmon Portable Lightweight Mini Keyboard
Award: Best Grip
WHY WE LIKE IT: This is a wireless keyboard controller with Bluetooth built-in, making it easy to turn your phone or tablet into a computer, in addition to integrating nicely with most smart TVs. This is just the perfect compact keyboard for controlling Bluetooth-enabled devices, such as your phone, Apple TV, Amazon Fire Stick, most if not all Samsung Smart TVs, and others. But, for an Apple-specific keyboard, you’ll want to compare the Magic Keyboard vs the Smart Keyboard for Mac.
- Very speedy connection with no lag
- Can be charged via USB
- It might be too small for large hands
- The trackpad does not work with PlayStations
- Not compatible with Windows computers
The Fosmon Portable Lightweight Mini is a compact keyboard with Bluetooth 3.0 connectivity right out of the box, allowing you to easily control any smart TV, streaming mobile device, tablet, or phone that supports the wireless technology. It can also be charged via USB and offers a backlight, both features helping to make this a must-have for the modern living room. The product is small and light, clocking in at just 8 oz, with a wireless range of about 33 feet. It could be a contender for the leading keyboards for iPhone.
While the touchpad was sensitive and got the job done, we found the slim form factor (not a full keyboard), while useful, may simply be too small for larger hands, especially while performing complex gestures. We also ran into trouble while attempting to control a PlayStation 4, finding that the keyboard worked fine but the touchpad did not. You can compare its features to the best keyboard and see for yourself.
#4 ANEWISH Mini Wireless Keyboard
Award: Best for Video Game Consoles
WHY WE LIKE IT: This keyboard is an ultra-light, 4 oz, product, with a pleasing ergonomic design, featuring a large 4.4” trackpad and a spiral-patterned, anti-slip backface. These design choices, and the ability to work with any USB-enabled gadget, make this a great keyboard for gaming applications.
- Very light weight; just 4 oz.
- The backlight has multiple brightness options
- Touchpad is huge, despite small keyboard size
- The home button doesn’t work with some Android TV boxes
- Battery life is short, 3-5 hours with backlight on
- The backlight is nice, but function keys are not lit
The ANEWISH Mini Wireless Keyboard is a true plug-and-play device, offering instant compatibility with smart TVs, laptops, gaming consoles, and projectors, among others, just as soon as you plug in the USB receiver. The keyboard offers an ultra-compact design while still being perfect for those with larger hands, thanks to the 4.4” touchpad and the anti-slip backface. That said, if you need a keyboard to tote regularly, you’ll want to check out the best foldable keyboards.
This is a great wireless backlit keyboard, offering a series of color and brightness options, but we did notice that the function keys did not light up, which could be an issue if you use these keys to map complex interactions. We appreciated the fact that the battery could be charged via USB, but noticed that it did not get much juice from a charge, around 3-5 hours if you are using the backlight, though it does come with an auto-sleep function that helps conserve battery power. It works great when watching the best streaming movies on your TV.
#5 ANEWKODI Mini Wireless Keyboard
Award: Excellent Battery Life
WHY WE LIKE IT: This keyboard is an extremely well-built product that features a maximum wireless length of around 30 feet and can easily connect with any Smart TV and related gadget that has a USB port, thanks to the included receiver. This is a great all-around keyboard at a fairly low price point.
- Backlight has multiple brightness options
- Battery holds charge for a week
- Large variety of quick access keys
- The keyboard goes to sleep too quickly
- No Bluetooth
- Some of the functions do not work with Fire TV Stick
The ANEWKODI 2.4GHz Mini Wireless Keyboard has pretty much every feature you are looking for in one of these products, including an impressive maximum wireless length, integration with smart TVs and gadgets, a large touchpad with intuitive gesture control, and a rechargeable battery, which gets around a week on a single charge. It also has a backlight, which comes in your choice of seven colors. All of these features are wrapped up in a lower-than-average price point, making this keyboard a great value.
The keyboard has a sleep function, which helps to conserve battery life, but we did find that it went to sleep too quickly for our tastes, in just a minute or so. Though the product does boast a large variety of quick access keys, which allow you to zoom around TV apps with ease, most of these keys do not work with Amazon’s Fire Stick, even though the device is technically supported by the keyboard.
#6 AMBOLOVE Mini Wireless Keyboard
Award: Best on a Budget
WHY WE LIKE IT: This mini keyboard is a feature-packed product that won’t break the bank, with a duo of analog media wheels, a lightweight design, a rechargeable battery, and the ability to connect to any TV or gadget with an available USB port. This is the perfect keyboard for those looking to upgrade their home theater without having to spend big bucks.
- Media controls make it very easy to use
- Keyboard is low priced
- Backlight is fully adjustable and can go bright
- Touchpad is small, just over an inch
- No Bluetooth
- Does not function with Amazon Fire Stick
The AMBOLOVE Mini Wireless Keyboard is a product that is low priced but still retains most of the features of its higher-priced cousins, including the ability to connect with any TV or gadget with a USB port, a multi-colored and fully adjustable backlight, a pair of analog media wheels and a rechargeable battery that gets around a week on a single charge, even with consistent use. This may not be the lightest product on this list, but the handheld design made it a pleasure to use. Plus, this is a full QWERTY keyboard.
While the media wheels are great for pausing and rewinding on the fly, the touchpad is on the smaller side, just over an inch, forcing larger hands to contort into some strange shapes to create the required gestures for advanced control options. If you want to maintain a correct sitting posture while gaming or working, you might need to go for the best keyboard stand.
#7 AmazonBasics Wireless Keyboard
Award: Best Battery
WHY WE LIKE IT: This keyboard is a great standard-sized product that has a maximum wireless length of 33 feet, which is on the higher end of this list, a full QWERTY keypad, and a simple plug-and-play design, and full functionality with any TV or gadget with a USB port.
- Full sizes keys make it great large hands
- Max wireless length of 33 feet
- Included AAA batteries last for months
- No backlight
- Some keys, including on/off switch, are awkwardly placed
- Keyboard is loud
The AmazonBasics Wireless Keyboard is your basic standard-sized keypad, with a full QWERTY layout, that boasts a maximum wireless distance of 33 feet, which we found worked throughout the entire length of our living space. The product connects to virtually any TV or gadget with an available USB port, offering true plug-and-play functionality. It does require a pair of AAA batteries, which the package does include. We also found these batteries to be sufficient for long-time use, with the company claiming it can go many months without replacing them.
The QWERTY keyboard does not feature a backlight, which could be an issue if you find yourself using the product in a dimly lit room or at night. The keyboard’s full QWERTY layout is nice with full-size keyboard keys, but the compact design does force some awkward placement of several important function keys, including the on/off switch. It’s also pretty loud, with the clacking, but unless you are typing a large document, this shouldn’t be an issue. If you like doing some lightweight work on your tablet, e.g., browsing or editing documents, you need a light and comfortable keyboard. Check out great options in our best tablet keyboard guide.
How We Decided
There are plenty of options out there in the world of smart TV keyboards. And since text entry on your remote control is a painstaking task, a smart TV keyboard is really a worthy investment. To make our list, we tested out dozens of models, favoring units that had a wireless distance of at least 20 feet, with many products boasting nearly twice that length. We also wanted to make sure the keyboards were easy to use and offered full integration with a wide variety of gadgets, smart TVs being the bare minimum. In the above list, we favored products that functioned with video game consoles, streaming devices, laptops, desktops, smartphones, and tablets, among other things.
Battery life was also a paramount concern, with most of the items in the above list able to be charged via USB or Micro USB connection. If the keyboard required batteries, we made sure that they were packed in and would last a long time, to save you the headache. We were also attracted to keyboards that were backlit since these products are often used to control the TV at night when light is nonexistent.
Smart TV Keyboard Buying Guide
The Most Important Features to Consider
- Maximum Wireless Distance
Living rooms come in all different shapes and sizes, so you are going to want to make sure any keyboard you purchase will function in any corner of the room you’ll be using it in. We made sure that every keyboard we recommended achieves a minimum wireless distance of 20 feet, with many nearing 40 feet. All of the items on the above list also connect wirelessly using the industry standard 2.4 GHz radio frequency and should experience very little, if any, interruption of signal. - Keyboard Size and Weight
While many Smart TV keyboards offer a compact form factor, sometimes they can skew too small for normal and large-sized hands. You’ll be using the keyboard to navigate menus and input search terms so, ideally, you’ll want something you can type quickly with. Most of the above products are suitable for all adults, with an occasional exception made for keyboards that offer maximum portability. As far as weight goes, the lighter the better, especially if you are going to be using the keyboard for extended periods. All of the products on the above list are lower in weight than standard keyboards. - Functionality With a Wide Variety of TVs and Gadgets
We wanted to keep things simple, choosing keyboards that would work with the lion’s share of modern TVs and affiliated gadgets, such as streaming devices. Most of these keyboards work via a USB receiver, which can plug into the gadget of your choosing. There are some streaming devices, those made by Amazon for instance, that don’t play nice with some media keyboards. While still offering functionality, you may run into trouble using some of the shortcut keys. None of the above products require drivers or anything like that to work, offering plug-and-play functionality out of the gate.
