Typing on a modern Apple keyboard isn’t a silent experience by any means, but it certainly doesn’t compete with a mechanical keyboard. There’s something satisfying about the clicks and clacks produced when typing on one of those specialty keyboards, an experience you miss out on when writing on your MacBook or iMac. But what if you didn’t have to? Turn out you can approximate the auditory allure of a mechanical keyboard while still using the board provided by Apple. You just need the right app.
Using Klack, every press of a key on your Mac will produce a corresponding keyboard “clack” from the speakers, creating the illusion you’re typing on a mechanical keyboard. It’s a little silly and serves to tangible function, but it’s also surprisingly satisfying. You’ll understand the second you start typing after installing it.
You can quickly switch between three different keyboard sounds from Klack’s menu bar shortcut: Two Everglide switches (Crystal Purple and Oreo) and one NovelKeys switch (Cream). All three options are distinct: Crystal Purple sounds most similar to a typewriter, Oreo sounds quick and clicky, and Cream sounds classic and muted. The sounds are randomly pitched, lending a realistic randomness to the clicks as you type.
Since launch, Klack’s developer has updated the utility, giving you the ability to change the volume of the clicks separate from the system volume. Right now, there are three main volume settings: Soft, Balanced (the default), and Loud, so you can decide how best to blend the switches into your Mac’s overall volume. The keyboard clicks are still affected by the overall system volume, however. I’d like to see a full volume control option in the future, but these three settings work well enough for now.
I only have two minor complaints: The first is a noticeable audio delay when using my Mac with Bluetooth headphones. The clicks sound their best through my AirPods, but because there’s a short interval between my keypress and the click, and it’s jarring.
My other issue is that only typed keys make a sound. That means you won’t hear anything if you hit Shift, Command, Option, Control, fn, or any of the function row. The one exception to this rule is Escape, perhaps because that key is so often used, the developer assumes people want to hear it. But I’d like to hear clicks no matter which key I press, and it breaks the illusion whenever I silently hit Shift or Command.
How to set up Klack
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It takes a bit more work to set Klack up than your average utility, but it isn’t too bad. Once you download and open it, a pop-up window will guide you to the Accessibility page in your system’s Privacy & Security settings. You need to give Klack permission to control your computer. (This might set off alarm bells from a privacy perspective, but a quick look at Klack’s App Store page reveals the developer does not collect your data.) From here, hit the (+) button, choose Klack from your apps, and you’re free to click and clack away.
Of course, Klack can’t do anything about the physical sounds your Mac’s keyboard already makes. Modern Mac keyboards are rather quiet, all things considered, but if you have a butterfly keyboard, you’ll have two loud keyboard clacks going off in tandem. That said, one Redditor did request Klack’s developer add a butterfly keyboard sound to the app, so don’t be surprised to see that in a future update.
You can download Klack on the Mac App Store for $3.99.
Free options don’t work as well
As Creative Bloq highlights, Klack isn’t the only Mac app out there that lets you customize your keyboard sounds. Mechvibes lets you assign any sound you want to your keyboard, while KeyBell offers a wider selection of mechanical sounds, and are free.
Klack definitely offers the best overall experience of the three. Mechvibes requires more set up, and is a bit more complex than the out-of-the-box experience Klack provides. And while fun, KeyBell isn’t quite as impressive: It doesn’t feel like every key corresponds to a click or clack, and the sounds aren’t as randomized as they are with Klack, so the experience is a bit more artificial.
Both alternative are free, so they offer a risk-free way to add sounds to your Mac’s keyboard. But for the best experience, Klack is worth the $4.