# RuneKeys — user reviews > 19 indexed App Store user reviews of RuneKeys by Pierre Bongen, rated 4.00/5 from 18 ratings. - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/runekeys/id1503915770/reviews - App overview in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/runekeys/id1503915770.md - Rating breakdown: 5★ 9 · 4★ 5 · 3★ 1 · 2★ 1 · 1★ 2 ## Newest reviews (1 of 19) ### 4/5 — It’s really cool, but *2020-06-08* It’s a little odd that they used what they did for sowilo, or ‘s’. **Developer response:** Please elaborate. The default character for the *sowilō rune is that of the Elder Futhark. ## Most critical reviews (10 lowest-rated) ### 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. ### 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. ### 3/5 — Good but a few things are off. *2020-07-21* This is a fun app for anyone who wants to learn to write with the runes. However, the “s” is incorrect (completely wrong symbol ᛊ), and the “v” is incorrect by using ᚠ when it should be using the same rune as the w. Even the use of y is questionable but I can at least understand that one since the “j” in Scandinavian languages is pronounced as a y. If you can work around these quarks, it’s fun! Just use the keyboard with out the hints, although you’re still stuck with the wrong s. Overall, it’s decent. **Developer response:** Hi! Thank you very much for your constructive review! :) My native language is German, so I guess I got the transcription for 'v' wrong (which is often pronounced [f] in German). Will be fixed in the upcoming release. 'j' in English needs more attention, I guess. There is no corresponding rune for [ʒ] (in German 'j' would be ᛃ). A possible transcription is perhaps a mix of phonetic transcription and literal transcription: d + sh, pronounced [dʃ] = ᛞᛋᚺ. Until around 550 AD ᛊ was used, later ᛋ. Press and hold the ᛊ key and select ᛋ if you prefer the younger rune. Speaking of younger: next release will have added a Younger Futhark keyboard, a way to contact me, and built-in help. Regards, Pierre Update 2020-Jul-23: The assignment of ᚠ to 'v' is a bug. Turns out that the key refers to the German key definitions. Fixed in next release. Update 2: There is now a mapping of its own of the character 'v' for the English transcription keyboard. But, since there is no rune for the voiced fricative /v/in the Elder Futhark, the key will become a key with no primary character and ᚹand ᚠ as alternative characters which, of course, are only approximations to /v/. Update 3: The addresses issues have been resolved in version 1.1 . ### 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. ### 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. ### 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. ### 4/5 — Pretty solid *2021-03-28* I grabbed this keyboard after realizing that a bundle with it and the dev’s IPA keyboard is available. The availability of separate layouts for different runic alphabets is a nice design choice. Some similar offerings on the App Store try to cram multiple alphabets into a single layout in ways that don’t make much sense. I see that other reviewers have already requested additional alphabets, which are no doubt in the works. It’d also be nice to be able to set the default output for keys with more than one rune assigned to them. If the rune you want for a particular purpose isn’t the default one, you have to tap and hold the key every time to select it. **Developer response:** Hi CdrSpock, this time I won't be able to release a new version soon because I am working on a third party project. The next thing planned for the RuneKeys keyboard is to add a Younger Futhark layout (only the bare runes, no transcription aids). The customisation of keys is a major feature which would require some work on the foundation and additional user interface elements. I think I might find some time to implement this in the autumn. ### 4/5 — Einfach, Kompakt, Genial *2021-01-08* Moin, Finde die App sehr gelungen, einfach zu bedienen und vor allem auch mit der hinweisfunktion für Leute etwas die nicht so mit Runen vertraut sind. Werden noch mehr Buchstaben folgen, einige fehlen mir leider noch? Grüße **Developer response:** Moin, der Unicode-Zeichenvorrat an Runen ist noch nicht erschöpft und es wäre noch möglich, die jüngere Runenreihe in seinen beiden Varianten mit Aufzunehmen (plus ein paar besondere Runen für Kalender, welche mit historischen Bezügen oder gar welche aus den Werken Tolkiens). Eine Tastatur zur Transkription ist allerdings recht aufwändig, da die nur 16 Runen der jüngeren Reihe mit mehreren Phonemen besetzt sind (ᚢ z.B. steht für 6 unterschiedliche Phoneme). Ich kann mir aber vorstellen, eine Tastatur der beiden Jüngeren Reihen ohne Transkriptionshilfe mal nachzuschieben. Gruß ## Most praised reviews (8 highest-rated) ### 5/5 — 👍🏻 *2024-08-03* Die 1.99 Euro waren es auf jeden Fall wert. Sehr schön🌷 ### 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. ### 5/5 — Great *2021-02-03* I really enjoy this keyboard. Very easy to use. I do wish the futhark in QWERTY mode would have sowilo and eihwaz in that keyboard. **Developer response:** Thank you for your rating, very much appreciated! Regarding your wish: The keyboard you mention is for the transcription of modern English. Some compromises were made when English phonemes have no corresponding rune. Runes of phonemes that are not part of modern English are not included in the transcription keyboard. The sound of ᛇ is unknown and there are different opinions on what it could have been. [iː] is the only phoneme of those hypothesised sounds that exist in modern English. I could perhaps add it to the e and i keys as alternatives. Speaking of which: The _sigel_ (ᛋ) rune is an alternative key of the s key. Press and hold the s key and all available alternatives for that key will pop up. But keep in mind that the sigel rune is not part of the Elder Futhark. ### 5/5 — Großartig! *2021-01-05* Danke für deine Arbeit, gerne habe ich deine Runen Tastatur bezahlt! Wenn du mal Zeit hast, magst du das alte futhark gestützt noch einfügen? Ich zahl dafür auch gerne noch mal! Heil Dir, deiner Familie und allen Göttern! **Developer response:** Hi, das kann die Tastatur, die lediglich die getippten Unicode-Zeichen an iOS sendet (welches letztlich diese zur App weiterleitet, die die Eingaben verarbeitet), nicht leisten. Die App selbst, in der die Runen eingegeben werden, muß in der Lage sein, den Text zu stürzen. Das kann neben anderen Apps zB das frei erhältliche Pages von Apple leisten, das auch hier im App Store geladen werden kann. ### 5/5 — Really good, one question *2020-06-17* I’ve been having a blast with using these runes and its very easy and fun to use, that said I am hoping that anglo-saxon and younger futhark keyboards shall be added. I would really appreciate it. **Developer response:** Glad you like RuneKeys. :) Currently working on an IPA keyboard (separate app)… Afterwards I will add Younger and Anglo-Saxon Futhark as an UPDATE free of charge to RuneKeys (if all the needed characters are supported by iOS which I think is the case). Probably available in a month. 2020-July-01: IPA-Keyboard is in App Store review now. Will begin to work in the update of RuneKeys this week-end. 2020-July-26: Anglo-Saxon keyboards are delayed until version 1.2, Younger Futhark until 1.3 . ### 5/5 — Hello *2020-05-20* I love different keyboards and i might be only 11 years old but i already speak some old norse. But i would suggest a version in a latin alphabet. **Developer response:** Hi! :) If you want to use Latin characters to write in Old Norse then one way to do so is to add the Icelandic system keyboard. It includes letters like ð, þ, ó etc.. Speaking of keyboards: Is there any need for a Younger Futhark keyboard variant? ### 5/5 — Great! *2020-04-25* Works well, thank you! **Developer response:** Thank you for your rating! I'm glad that you like RuneKeys. --- *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.*