Type Vietnamese with Telex
Letters first, tone last. This keyboard shows what every key does, and refuses what Vietnamese never writes.
Watch, then try:
Your keyboard types Telex here: turn your own Vietnamese keyboard (Unikey…) off for this page.Tap the keys below, or switch to your own Vietnamese keyboard.
One key per tone
Typed at the end of the syllable. Each one has a trick to remember it.
- ssắcas → áS for Sắc
- fhuyềnaf → àF for Falling: the tone goes down
- rhỏiar → ảhỏi means “to ask”: its mark is a ? without the dot, and r for Reply
- xngãax → ãx zigzags like the ngã tilde ~
- jnặngaj → ạthe nặng dot is the dot of the j
Learn Telex in 5 minutes
Five one-minute chapters with real everyday words. You type, the keyboard corrects.
- 1Tones go last
- 2Double it = hat
- 3w = the other variant
- 4dd = đ
- 5All together
Telex in a few rules
Everything the course teaches, to read at your pace. Click a word to watch it typed again.
1 Tones go last
Type the tone last
Type every letter of the syllable first, then the tone key. The keyboard puts the mark in the right place by itself.
One key per tone
Five keys, one per tone. No key means the level tone (ngang). No Vietnamese syllable ends with these letters: typed at the end, the keyboard knows it is a tone.
- ssắcas → áS for Sắc
- fhuyềnaf → àF for Falling: the tone goes down
- rhỏiar → ảhỏi means “to ask”: its mark is a ? without the dot, and r for Reply
- xngãax → ãx zigzags like the ngã tilde ~
- jnặngaj → ạthe nặng dot is the dot of the j
2 Double it = hat
aa â · ee ê · oo ô
To put the hat (dấu mũ, the circumflex) on a vowel, type it twice in a row. The tone still goes last.
3 w = the other variant
aw ă · ow ơ · uw ư
Doubling gives the hat (â, ê, ô). w gives the other variant of the vowel you just typed: a → ă (dấu trăng, the breve), o → ơ and u → ư (dấu móc, the horn). e has no other one than ê.
ươ: one w after both
The usual way: u, o, then a single w, which puts the horn on both letters. A w after each letter (u w o w) works too.
4 dd = đ
dd đ
The crossed đ is typed d twice. A single d stays the Vietnamese d (dạ, dì).
5 All together
Letter by letter, tone at the end
Each change right after its letter, the tone at the very end of the syllable. That's all.
+ Going further Going further
The tone can also come earlier
Keyboards accept the tone in the middle: the result is the same. Typing it last is still the simplest.
Typing a key again undoes it
To keep the letter as it is, type it once more.
Shortcuts
w alone gives ư, z removes the tone.
All of Telex on one screen
Seven letters, five tones, one rule: letters first, tone last.
| Letter | You type | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| â | aa | Double it = hat (dấu mũ) |
| ê | ee | Double it = hat (dấu mũ) |
| ô | oo | Double it = hat (dấu mũ) |
| đ | dd | Double the consonant |
| ươ | uow | one w = both horns |
| ư | uw · or w alone | w = horn (dấu móc) |
| ơ | ow | w = horn (dấu móc) |
| ă | aw | w = breve (dấu trăng) |
No "uu": ư is typed uw or w.
| Key | Tone | |
|---|---|---|
| s | sắcS for Sắc | as → á |
| f | huyềnF for Falling: the tone goes down | af → à |
| r | hỏihỏi means “to ask”: its mark is a ? without the dot, and r for Reply | ar → ả |
| x | ngãx zigzags like the ngã tilde ~ | ax → ã |
| j | nặngthe nặng dot is the dot of the j | aj → ạ |
| z | removes the tone | az → a |
The tone key goes at the end of the syllable: nước = nuowcs.
Watch it type
How much Telex you really type
Measured on the 2,000 most common syllables of today's Vietnamese (film subtitles + web).
- 73 %need a tone key
- 32 %need a hat: aa, ee, oo
- 18 %need w: ă, ơ, ư
- 7 %start with dd: đ
- 13 %are plain letters only
- +1.3extra keys per syllable on average
Same result, different keys
Telex uses letters, VNI uses the number row. Telex keeps your hands on the letters: that's why most people use it.
| Mark | Telex | VNI |
|---|---|---|
| á | as | a1 |
| à | af | a2 |
| ả | ar | a3 |
| ã | ax | a4 |
| ạ | aj | a5 |
| â | aa | a6 |
| ê | ee | e6 |
| ô | oo | o6 |
| ơ | ow | o7 |
| ư | uw | u7 |
| ă | aw | a8 |
| đ | dd | d9 |
Turn on Telex everywhere
Every device already has it. Once it's on, the keys are the ones you learn here.
Windows 10 / 11
Settings → Time & language → Language & region → Add a language → Vietnamese. Vietnamese Telex comes with it. Switch with Windows key + Space.
Mac
System Settings → Keyboard → Text Input → Edit → + → Vietnamese → Telex. Switch from the menu bar.
iPhone / iPad
Settings → General → Keyboard → Keyboards → Add New Keyboard → Vietnamese → Telex. Switch with the globe key.
Android (Gboard)
Gboard settings → Languages → Add keyboard → Tiếng Việt → Telex. Switch with the globe key.
On this page, turn your own Vietnamese keyboard off, or pick “My Vietnamese keyboard” above the keys.
Why the keyboard says no
Not needed to type: these are spelling rules of Vietnamese, and the keyboard already applies them. Here is why.
⌨️ The keyboard applies this rule
c or k?
Same /k/ sound. Write K before i, e, ê, y, and C before every other vowel.
kẹokêukỳcácơmcon
⌨️ The keyboard applies this rule
qu
Q is always followed by U. That u rounds the lips, like the o of toán: after qu, “an” sounds “oan” (quan sounds like toán, quà like hoà, quê like thuê, quý like tuy). The rounding is written once: quan, never “quoan”. One exception: before ô, this u is the u of uô (quốc).
quanquàquêquýquốc
⌨️ The keyboard applies this rule
g or gh?
Same sound. Write GH before i, e, ê, and G everywhere else.
ghếghighegàgỗ
⌨️ The keyboard applies this rule
ng or ngh?
Same sound. Write NGH before i, e, ê, and NG everywhere else.
nghenghĩnghềngủngon
⌨️ The keyboard applies this rule
Finals p, t, c, ch: two tones only
A syllable ending in p, t, c or ch only takes sắc or nặng: the sound cannot be drawn out.
mắtmộthọcđẹpsạch
Quick answers
What is Telex?
A way to type Vietnamese on a normal keyboard: aa gives â, aw gives ă, dd gives đ, and s f r x j at the end of a syllable give the five tones.
What is the difference between Telex and a Vietnamese keyboard?
Telex is the typing method. The Vietnamese keyboard is the software that applies it: Unikey, or the one built into Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android. All of them use the same Telex keys.
Telex or VNI: which one should I learn?
Telex, unless you already know VNI. Both give the same text; Telex never leaves the letter keys, VNI uses the number row.
Do I type the tone before or after the letters?
After: type the whole syllable, then the tone key. Keyboards also accept it in the middle, but at the end it is always right, and the keyboard puts the mark in the right place.
How do I type ươ, as in người?
u, o, then one w: nguowif gives người. A w after each letter (nguwowif) works too.
Why can't I type “màt”?
A syllable ending in p, t, c or ch only takes sắc or nặng: mát, mạt. Every Vietnamese keyboard follows that rule; this one tells you why.
My keyboard types “aa” instead of â. Why?
Your Vietnamese keyboard is off (or set to another method). Turn it on and pick Telex, or type on this page: it does the Telex for you.
You can type it. Now read it.
Our app teaches people who grew up hearing Vietnamese to read it, in their family's accent.
Create my free account