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Keebi vs Gboard on iPhone: Which Keyboard Keeps Your Words?
By the llcloud team 5 min read
The short answer
Choose Keebi. Its autocorrect never swaps a real word for another one, every fix undoes in one tap, and it works fully without Full Access. Gboard's iPhone app was last updated in May 2022, and its search and voice input go to Google.
Keebi is the better iPhone keyboard if autocorrect keeps changing words you meant. It fixes clear typos, never replaces a real word, and shows each fix as a one-tap undo. It has a real number row, a search layout without stray dots, and themes you can design. Gboard for iPhone has Google Search built in, but its App Store version history ends in May 2022.
Gboard is Google's keyboard, and on Android it is often the one your phone came with. On iPhone it is an app you add. Keebi is an iPhone keyboard built around one promise: autocorrect that keeps your words. This comparison is as of October 2026 and uses Gboard's App Store listing and Google's own help pages for its facts.
Keebi vs Gboard at a glance
| Keebi | Gboard | |
|---|---|---|
| Never replaces a real word with another | ✓ | Not stated |
| One-tap undo for every fix | ✓ | Not stated |
| Works without Full Access | ✓ | ✓ (Search needs it) |
| What leaves your phone | GIF search words, with Full Access | Searches, voice input, usage statistics |
| Number row | ✓ | Not stated |
| Search bar layout without stray dots | ✓ | Not stated |
| Swipe typing | ✓ Free | ✓ |
| Theme editor and photo themes | ✓ (Pro) | ✓ (themes) |
| GIFs and emoji search | ✓ (GIFs Pro, Full Access) | ✓ |
| Google Search in the keyboard | ✗ | ✓ |
| Dictation | Apple's dictation, built into iOS | Sent to Google |
| Proofread and rewrite | ✓ On your iPhone, with Apple Intelligence | ✗ |
| Latest App Store update | Maintained | Version 2.3.19, May 2022 |
Which one keeps the words you meant?
This is why Keebi exists. Most keyboards, Apple's included, guess the word you probably meant and swap it in when you press space. When the guess is another real word, "we'll" goes out as "well" and a name turns into a dictionary word.
Keebi follows a different set of rules. It fixes clear typos, like "teh" or "becuase", and never replaces a real word with another real word. Every fix shows in an undo chip right after it happens. Tap it, or press delete once, and your word comes back, and Keebi keeps it as typed from then on. It also never goes back to change a word you already passed, so nothing shifts when you hit send. Contractions like dont and youre are handled for you, and in languages with accents a missing one is added, so ecole becomes école.
Gboard's App Store description covers glide typing, search, GIFs, emoji and stickers. It does not describe how its autocorrect treats real words or how you undo a correction. Our guide on stopping iPhone autocorrect changing words explains why keyboards make these swaps at all.
What does each keyboard send from your iPhone?
Gboard's description says it sends your searches to Google's web servers to give you results, that voice input is sent to Google for transcription, and that it sends usage statistics. Google's setup guide says Google Search on the keyboard needs Full Access, and that your searches are sent to Google but nothing else is shared. Its App Store privacy label lists audio data and a device ID among the data linked to you.
Keebi's keyboard has no analytics and no crash reporting inside it. Without Full Access, iOS does not even let it reach the network. With Full Access, one thing is sent: when you open GIFs, Keebi asks GIPHY for GIFs and sends the words you type into the GIF search. Your typing in your apps, your learned words and your clipboard stay on your iPhone. Rewrite runs on Apple's on-device model, so the text you rewrite stays on your iPhone too. The Keebi privacy policy lists exactly what the app sends.
Is Gboard still being updated on iPhone?
As of October 2026, the App Store's version history for Gboard lists version 2.3.19 from May 2, 2022 as its latest release, and the listing says it requires iOS 12 or later. Several iOS versions have shipped since then, with changes to how keyboards look and behave.
Keebi needs iOS 17 or newer and runs on iPhone and iPad, docked or floating on iPad. Its autocorrect works in 91 languages, and it has layouts for more than 120.
What does Keebi add for everyday typing?
- A real number row above the letters, on by default, with the comma on the main keys.
- A search layout. In Safari's address bar and other search fields, you get a wide space bar with no period beside it, so a search never comes out as without.the.dots.
- A space bar trackpad. Hold or drag on the space bar to move the cursor.
- One-handed mode for free, with height and width fine tuning in Pro.
- Emoji with search, plus emoji from words: type a colon and a name, like :smile.
- Themes. Day, Night, Pure Black and Glass are free. Pro adds more themes, a theme editor and photo themes.
- Learned words you control. See every word Keebi learned, remove any of them, and keep a never-learn list.
The full list, split into free and Pro, is on the Keebi page.
Why choose Keebi over Gboard?
- Your words stay your words. Real words are never swapped for other words, and every fix undoes in one tap.
- Private by design. No analytics in the keyboard, no account, and it works fully without Full Access.
- Built for today's iPhone. iOS 17 or newer, iPhone and iPad, with its own number row and search layout.
- Rewrite on your iPhone. Proofread for free with Apple Intelligence, and more styles in Pro, without your text going to a server.
- Make it yours. Free themes with day and night switching, and a theme editor with photo themes in Pro.
- Pay how you like. The autocorrect promise is free. Pro comes by month, by year or once for life.
If you are new to third-party keyboards, our guide to adding a keyboard on iPhone explains what Full Access allows. Comparing more options? See Keebi vs SwiftKey and Keebi vs the iPhone keyboard.
Sources
Questions
Is Gboard still updated on iPhone?
As of October 2026, the App Store's version history for Gboard shows version 2.3.19, released on May 2, 2022, as the latest. The listing says it requires iOS 12 or later. Keebi is built for current iPhones and iPads, needs iOS 17 or newer, and its autocorrect, layouts and themes are maintained by the developer who answers its support email.
Does Gboard need Full Access on iPhone?
Google's setup guide says that if you turn on Full Access, you can use Google Search on the keyboard, and that your searches are sent to Google. Gboard's App Store description adds that voice input goes to Google for transcription. Keebi works completely without Full Access. Turning it on is optional and adds clipboard history, GIFs, haptics and speak keys.
Does Keebi have Google Search like Gboard?
No. Keebi is a keyboard for typing, not a search tool, and it never sends what you type to a search engine. What it adds instead is autocorrect that keeps real words, a one-tap undo for every fix, a number row, a search and address bar layout without stray dots, and themes you can build yourself.
Can Keebi swipe type like Gboard?
Yes, and for free, as on Gboard. Glide from letter to letter and the word appears, with other guesses in the suggestion bar. Keebi's free version also covers autocorrect, the undo chip, the number row, two languages, emoji with search, one-handed mode and proofreading with Apple Intelligence.
Which languages does Keebi autocorrect?
Keebi autocorrects 91 languages, including English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Italian, Dutch, Korean, Turkish, Indonesian, Polish, Russian, Ukrainian and Greek. It has layouts for more than 120 languages, converts Japanese to kanji as you type, and types Chinese with Zhuyin, Cangjie, Quick or Zhengma. Two languages at once are free, a third is Pro.
