# RuneKeys — Keyboards for writing in runes > Runic keyboards for transcribing English and German, with extended characters. (iPhone/iPad app by Pierre Bongen.) - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/runekeys/id1503915770 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`) - Developer: [Pierre Bongen](https://appshunter.io/developer/436144429) - Category: Education, Utilities - Price: $3.99 - Rating: 4.00/5 from 18 App Store ratings · 19 written reviews indexed - Age rating: 4+ - Requires: iOS 13.2 · 8 MB - Languages: American English, German (Germany) - Released: 2020-03-22 - Data updated: 2026-08-21 - Monetization: paid - User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/runekeys/id1503915770/reviews.md ## What is RuneKeys? RuneKeys provides keyboards for writing in runes: • Elder Futhark: - Keyboard for transcribing English - Keyboard for transcribing German - Pure Elder Futhark keyboard • Anglo-Saxon Futhork: - Keyboard for transcribing English - Pure Anglo-Saxon Futhork keyboard As the keys of the keyboards provided by the system do, keys of the rune keyboards reveal additional characters and symbols when pressed and hold. Among these are variations (e.g. of the *hagalaz rune), alternative transcriptions, and related characters (e.g. 2 and ²). P R I V A C Y   S T A T E M E N T I design my software following the principle to only collect, process, and store data that is actually needed for the software to serve its purpose. No single bit more than that. In German, the name of this principle is "Datensparsamkeit." A literal translation of this word is "data thrift". In effect, this means: • RuneKeys has no user accounts. RuneKeys will not ask you for personal data. • Data you enter in the RuneKeys app will not leave the app. In case of the provided keyboards, the characters you type will be passed to the operating system which will process them in order, for example, to insert them into a text field. • No personal data is collected or processed. • No user tracking of any kind is used. ## Key features - Elder Futhark keyboards - Anglo-Saxon Futhork keyboards - English and German transcription - Extended characters via press-and-hold - No user accounts or personal data collection ## Recent user reviews (10 of 19) All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/runekeys/id1503915770/reviews.md ### 4/5 — Seems great *2025-06-21* I’ve just gotten this app, love it so far! **Developer response:** Sorry for the late response. I appreciate your positive feedback! Thank you! ### 4/5 — Love the keyboard *2025-02-26* Handy little keyboard. I really appreciate it. Thank you for making it. I’m not sure if you are willing to update it, but my daughter and I want to be able to send each other texts in the alphabet on our iPhones and the letters are so fine it’s hard to read them. Could a bolder text for texts be possible? It’s not very legible currently when used that way. **Developer response:** Hello, walker1812! Sorry for the late reply. Thank you for your positive rating! Regarding bolder text: This is an issue that lies beyond the RuneKeys keyboard. The keyboard tells the operating system which Unicode character was typed by the user. The character is forwarded to the app that is receiving character input at the moment. The app choses how to present the characters by, for example, selecting a font. Most fonts do not contain the Unicode characters for runes and, depending on how the app displays text, the operating system provides the glyphs for such characters that are missing. Those glyphs are the thin runes you see in your message app. So, the solution might be complicated or not possible. Does the app used for messaging support custom fonts? Then it might be a solution for you to find, install and use such font. Otherwise, you are unfortunately left with the thin letters. ### 5/5 — 👍🏻 *2024-08-03* Die 1.99 Euro waren es auf jeden Fall wert. Sehr schön🌷 ### 2/5 — Not appearing *2023-02-15* Doesn't show up on keyboard options. Can't use it on other apps **Developer response:** How you make the RuneKeys keyboard available in other apps is described in the app under Help -> Installation -> Adding Keyboards. ### 5/5 — ᛬ᚹᛖᚱᛃ᛫ᚷᚢᛞ᛫ᚨᛈ᛬ *2022-07-30, version 1.2* ᛬ᛁ᛫ᚦᛁᚾᚲ᛫ᚦᛁᛊ᛫ᚨᚹ᛫ᛁᛉ᛫ᚷᚢᛞ᛫ᛒᚢᛏ᛫ᛁ᛫ᛞᛟ᛫ᚨᛞᛗᛁᛏ᛫ᛁ᛫ᚹᛁᛊᚺ᛫ᚦᛖᚱ᛫ᚹᚨᛉ᛫ᚦᛖ᛫ᛊᛟᚹᚢᛚᛟ᛫ᛖᛚᛞᚨᚱ᛫ᚲᚨᚱᛁᚲᛏᛖᚱ᛫ᚹᛁᚦ᛫3᛫ᛚᛁᚾᛉ᛫ᚾᛟᛏ᛫4᛫ᚦᛖ᛫ᛊᛖᚲᛟᚾᛞ᛫ᛟᛈᛊᚺᚢᚾ᛫ᛁᛊ᛫ᚠᚱᛟᛗ᛫ᚦᛖ᛫ᛃᚢᚾᚷᚱ᛫ᚠᚢᚦᚨᚱᚲ᛬ ᛬ᛋ᛬ ᛬ᚦᛖ᛫ᛈᚱᛖᚹᛁᚢᛊ᛫ᚱᚢᚾ᛫ᛒᛖᚠᛟᚱ᛫ᚦᛁᛊ᛫ᛁᛉ᛫ᚦᛖ᛫ᚹᚢᚾ᛫ᛁ᛫ᚱᛖᚠᛖᚱ᛫ᛏᛟ᛬ ᛬ᛈᛚᛇᛉ᛫ᚲᛟᚾᛊᛁᛞᛖᚱ᛫ᚨᛞᛇᛝ᛫ᚦᛁᛊ᛫ᚨᛉ᛫ᛊ᛫2ᚾᛞ᛫ᚲᚺᛟᛃᛊ᛬ ᛬𐌔᛬ ᛬ᚦᚨᚾᚲᛊ᛫ᚠᛟᚱ᛫ᚲᚢᚾᛊᛁᛞᛖᚱᛁᛝ᛬ **Developer response:** ᛊ (and variants with even more strokes) was used first and was later reduced to the three strokes variant in the Elder Futhark. You obtain ᛋ by tapping and holding the ᛊ key. ### 5/5 — Excellently made *2022-05-10* This app is awesome and well worth the money. The keyboards are really well designed and easy to use. I'm a big fan. I do wish that the Futhorc keyboard had the calc rune for a more direct k transliteration, but I'm not at all an expert so if it's missing for a good reason then no problem. I also wish you would've published a picture or list with all the runes that are on the keyboards in the app's store page. I was really hoping to get an app with all the runes I'd memorized, but this one seems to be missing calc like I mentioned. It's ok though. Still a great, user friendly app. **Developer response:** Hi, thank you very much for your review. The keyboard's rune inventory is based on the Codex Vindobonensis 795, a compilation of runes used in the 9th century AD. I am quite busy these days so unfortunately I cannot promise anything at the moment. But I put the calc rune on the list of feature candidates to be implemented in a future update. ### 4/5 — I wish it included more runes *2022-05-06* It’s missing the Yr rune ᛦ **Developer response:** Hi Barlow Tony, the yr rune is ᚣ which is included in the keyboard's rune inventory. The calc rune (ᛣ) is not part of the Codex Vindobonensis 795 upon which the keyboard's design is based. Another user requested this rune to be supported which I intend to add in a future version of the keyboard. I am quite busy these days, though, so it might take some time until I can work on the next version. ### 1/5 — No use *2021-09-28* Could not use in any other apps expect rune app. No way to give full access. Useless. **Developer response:** You must add the RuneKeys keyboard in the Settings.app. This is also described in detail in the RuneKeys app itself. ### 1/5 — DO NOT BUY *2021-08-13* Can’t be used in text will not allow for translation for anyone else seeing it waste of money. Had it for literally 3 minutes, and regret it. Glad I can delete, congrats on your money farm dev **Developer response:** ᛁ᛫ᛏᚺᛁᚾᚲ᛫ᛃᛟᚢ᛫ᚨᚱᛖ᛫ᚾᛟᛏ᛫ᛏᛖᛚᛚᛁᚾᚷ᛫ᛏᚺᛖ᛫ᛏᚱᚢᛏᚺ As you can see, everyone else can read what is written using the RuneKeys keyboard. Edit 2021-Aug-26: Fixed typo, replaced ᚷ with ᚺ. ### 4/5 — Grundsätzlich gut *2021-08-01* Für die Anfänge eine wirklich gute App. Befasst man sich etwas länger mit Runen so muss man sich irgendwann entscheiden, wie man sie sich übersetzen will. Da es keine festen Regeln gibt und sich in der Literatur diverse Ansichten finden lassen, hätte ich mir der Vollständigkeit halber auch Eiwaz gewünscht. Diese Runde finde ich gar nicht. Ob man nun Eiwaz benutzt oder diese durch „ai“ ersetzt kann man sich ja selbst überlegen, aber soweit ich weiß gehört sie zum alten Futhark und dann hätte ich sie auch gerne dabei 😊 **Developer response:** ᛇ ist Teil der sekundären Belegungen der ᚨ-Taste: Einfach länger gedrückt halten und die sekundären Belegungen erscheinen. ## Frequently asked questions about RuneKeys ### What runic alphabets does RuneKeys support? RuneKeys supports Elder Futhark and Anglo-Saxon Futhork. It includes keyboards for transcribing English and German, as well as pure runic keyboards for each script. ### How does RuneKeys handle user data? RuneKeys adheres to a strict 'data thrift' principle. It does not collect, process, or store any personal data, and there are no user accounts. Data entered stays within the app. ### Can I access special characters with RuneKeys? Yes, the rune keyboards in RuneKeys offer additional characters and symbols when keys are pressed and held. This includes variations of runes, alternative transcriptions, and related symbols like exponents. ### What devices is RuneKeys compatible with? RuneKeys is available for iPhone, iPad, and iPod devices, indicated by its compatibility with iOS devices. ### What is the age rating for RuneKeys? RuneKeys has an age rating of 4+, making it suitable for a wide range of users. ### How often is RuneKeys updated? The latest version of RuneKeys is 1.2, which was last updated on August 2, 2020. This suggests updates may not be very frequent. ### What is the price of RuneKeys? RuneKeys is a paid app, priced at $1.99. ### Does RuneKeys have ads? No, RuneKeys does not contain advertisements. It is a paid application that focuses on providing its functionality without interruptions. ## Version history (last 3 releases) ### 1.2 — 2020-08-02 Anglo-Saxon keyboards. In Detail: NEW: • Added Anglo-Saxon keyboards: - Keyboard for transcribing English - Pure Anglo-Saxon Futhork keyboard • Added more help topics. BUGFIXES: • Removed all transcriptions for the letter q except for /kw/ from the English keyboards. ### 1.1 — 2020-07-25 Bugfixes, built-in help. In Detail: NEW: • Added built-in help which provides information on: - how to install the provided keyboards and making them available in other apps, - how the keys of the keyboard work. • Added the *ēwaz rune (/æ/) to the key of the English keyboard that transcribes the letter A. • Added ways to connect with me. BUGFIXES: • Transcription en -> Elder Futhark: - The phoneme /ʒ/ produced in English for the letter J has no corresponding rune in the Elder Futhark. Previously, the *jēra- rune was used to transcribe J, a decision which was based on the transliteration from Elder Futhark to Latin script. Now, the key to transcribe J has no primary character anymore but two alternative characters: A sequence of runes which attempt to come as close as possible to /ʒ/ and the *jēra- rune. - The /kf/ alternative character for Q is found in the repertoire of Germans who speak English with an accent, so it has been removed from the English transcription keyboard. - The phoneme /v/ produced in English for the letter V has no corresponding rune in the Elder Futhark. Previously, the *fehu rune was used to transcribe V, a decision which was based on the fact that in German V can produce the phoneme /f/, the voiceless syllable of /v/. To some using the *wunjō rune is more natural. Now, the key to transcribe V has no primary character anymore but two alternative characters: One is the *fehu rune, the other is the *wunjō rune. - The phoneme /ʒ/ produced in English for the letter G has no corresponding rune in the Elder Futhark. Previously, only the *gebō rune was used to transcribe the letter G which produces /g/ but not /ʒ/. Now, the key to transcribe G has no primary character anymore but two alternative characters: One is the *gebō rune, the other is a sequence of runes which attempt to come as close as possible to /ʒ/. • Transcription de -> Elder Futhark: - The phoneme /v/ produced in German for the letters W and V has no corresponding rune in the Elder Futhark. Previously, the *fehu rune was used to transcribe both of these letters, a decision which was based on the fact that in German V can produce the phoneme /f/ as well as /v/. Now, the keys to transcribe W and V have no primary character anymore but two alternative characters: One is the *fehu rune, the other is the *wunjō rune which produces /w/, both of which are only approximations to /v/. • User Interface: - Visibility of hints was not updated properly. - The position of the key popover was wrong in some situations. - Some parts of the keyboards were not updated when the user interface style changed to dark mode or back from it. - iOS's screen edge pan gesture recognisers interfered with keys near the edges of the screen. NOTES: The Younger Futhark and Anglon-Saxon keyboards are still in development and will be available in the next release. ### 1.0 — 2020-03-22 No release notes. ## Apps similar to RuneKeys | App | Rating | Price | Category | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [Flash Cards Flashcards Maker](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/flash-cards-flashcards-maker/id669486043) | 4.5 (18,157) | Free | Education | | [Picture Mushroom: Identifier](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/picture-mushroom-identifier/id1474578078) | 4.7 (24,002) | Free | Education | | [Drops: Language Learning Games](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/drops-language-learning-games/id939540371) | 4.7 (71,502) | Free | Education | | [Yousician: Learn & Play Guitar](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/yousician-learn-and-play-guitar/id959883039) | 4.6 (137,698) | Free | Education | | [Rock & Crystal Identifier](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/rock-and-crystal-identifier/id1553800023) | 4.6 (2,630) | Free | Education | | [Kanji Study - Learn Japanese!](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/kanji-study-learn-japanese/id1078107994) | 4.7 (7,076) | Free | Education | ## More apps by Pierre Bongen - [Lights at Sea](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/lights-at-sea/id1173530962) - [Krdz](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/krdz/id1438141281) - [IPAKeys](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ipakeys/id1521691499) - [Fix at Night](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/fix-at-night/id1553681316) All apps by Pierre Bongen: https://appshunter.io/developer/436144429 ## Related topics [runes keyboard](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/runes-keyboard) · [viking runes](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/viking-runes) · [rune keyboard](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/rune-keyboard) --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-21.*