Comparison

CharMap vs xKeyboard

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

CharMap

Explore and manage Unicode characters with this utility. Organize favorites, view details, and copy characters to your clipboard. Use the custom keyboard to insert them anywhere and sync collections across devices.

Highlights
  • Browse curated character categories
  • Organize favorite characters
  • View character details and copy to clipboard
  • Insert characters with custom keyboard
  • Discover characters and blocks
  • Sync collections across devices
  • Preview system fonts
Features
Read full description

CharMap allows to you discover, organize, and use unicode characters. FEATURES • Browse a collection of curated character categories, and organize your favourite characters into custom collections. • View character details and copy characters to the clipboard in a variety of formats. • Enable the CharMap keyboard to insert characters wherever custom keyboards are supported. • Discover unicode characters and blocks using a dedicated unicode browser. • Automatically sync your collections between devices. • Quickly access your custom collections using the collection widget. • Browse system fonts and view font metadata. • No ads, trackers, or analytics. Your data is stored on-device, and optionally synced across your private iCloud account.

About

xKeyboard

Design your own keyboard with custom layouts, keys, symbols, and Unicode characters. This app allows you to create specialized keyboards for various needs, from mathematical equations to phonetic alphabets, and use them across different text editing applications.

Highlights
  • Custom keyboard layouts
  • Symbol and Unicode integration
  • Specialized keyboards (Math, IPA, Chemistry)
  • Template-based creation
  • Use in text editing apps
Read full description

Using xKeyboard, you can create a custom keyboard that includes layout, keys, symbols, and Unicode. The created custom keyboard can be used in text editing software on iPhone and iPad, such as Word, PPT, Excel, notes, and can also be used in text editing boxes. Built-in Keyboards - Unicode Keyboard - ABC Keyboard - ASCII Keyboard - Digits Keyboard : Binary, Integer, Decimal, Octonary, Hexadecimal - Date & Time Keyboard - Color Keyboard - Collection Keyboard : Symbols, Words, Sentences, Images, Colors - IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) Keyboard : IPA English ( DJ, K.K. ) - Subjects: Math, Chemistry, Music Language - Word Keyboards: English, French, German, Spanish ... - Code-Word Keyboards: Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional ... Culture - Astrology Keyboard: 12 zodiac signs, 10 celestial bodies, full set of aspects, elements, moon phases and auxiliary symbols - I Ching Keyboard - Chess Keyboard: Chess notation keyboard, chess symbols - Chinese Chess Keyboard: Chinese chess notation keyboard - Dice Keyboard - Mahjong Keyboard - Playing Cards Keyboard ---------- Custom - Layout: Custom layouts are better suited for specialized input scenarios. - Environment: Different environments have different rules - Certain keyboards can serve as templates, allowing you to build custom keyboards faster and more easily. ---------- Privacy : We DO NOT COLLECT ANY INFORMATION THAT YOU TYPE using this app. xKeyboard does not require network access, and Allow Full Access is not necessary. If users Allow Full Access, the following functions will be enabled: - Copy, Paste, Cut : these functions will call UIPasteboard APIs. ---------- Tips: 1. If the xKeyboard is not visible in Settings > Keyboards, then reboot the device and reinstall 2. If you could not find xKeyboard when tap globe key : Remove xKeyboard in the system settings, re-add it. ---------- Charging method: Most of the features of this software are paid for, but before purchasing, we hope that users can know if the software has the desired features and if it is possible to customize a keyboard that the user wants. Therefore, the software can be downloaded for free and allows users to try creating a keyboard before paying. Terms of Use : https://www.jianshu.com/p/b2a855c32ffe Privacy Policy : https://www.jianshu.com/p/46e225ffbc59

Screenshots

CharMap4 screens
xKeyboard4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: CharMap at 4.0 against xKeyboard's 3.2. CharMap also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3) and review sentiment (54% vs 39%). xKeyboard's advantage is update cadence (monthly vs every 4 months) and ratings volume (181 vs 57). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. xKeyboard sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.29 per month. CharMap asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

CharMap holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 3.2. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 57 and 181 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 54% of CharMap's written reviews are positive against 39% of xKeyboard's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

CharMap ships an update every 4 months, xKeyboard monthly. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
CharMap versus xKeyboard: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCharMapxKeyboard
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.0 (57 ratings) — better3.2 (181 ratings)
Positive reviews53.7% of reviews — better39.2% of reviews
Number of ratings57181 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsMonthly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS26.018.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size28 MB104 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperConor Mulligan煦 张

Customer experience

CharMap

All ratings57 ratings
Positive71.9%
Neutral8.8%
Negative19.3%
Written reviews67 reviews
Positive53.7%
Neutral6.0%
Negative40.3%

xKeyboard

All ratings181 ratings
Positive50.3%
Neutral14.9%
Negative34.8%
Written reviews125 reviews
Positive39.2%
Neutral20.8%
Negative40.0%

User reviews

CharMap

From 57 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🌟 Genuinely amazing for needs
  • 💡 Custom keyboards brilliant
  • 💯 Has every Unicode
  • ✨ Very impressive
  • 👍 Great for computer science

Room to improve

  • ❌ No return/enter key
  • ❓ Feature not obvious
  • ⚠️ Characters omitted in other apps
  • ⚪ Keyboard looks like white rectangle
  • 😵 UI is ugly and old

xKeyboard

From 181 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Highly customizable
  • 👍 Versatile for various use cases
  • 🚀 Powerful keyboard creation capabilities
  • 👍 Useful for conlangs and rare scripts
  • 👍 Allows creating custom characters

Room to improve

  • 🔒 Paywall for core functionality
  • 🐛 Crashes when deleting/editing keys
  • 👎 Confusing and unintuitive interface
  • 👎 Lacks documentation and tutorials
  • 👎 Missing basic features like autocorrect

Bugs and requests

CharMap

Reported bugs

12 issues
  • Characters omitted in other apps
  • Keyboard looks like white rectangle in some apps
  • Private Use Area characters not shown
  • Collections feature quit working
  • App crashes every time it's opened
Show 7 more
  • App crashes on iPad Pro
  • App crashes on iPad
  • Everything gone after update
  • App doesn't open after update
  • Some symbols are not shown
  • Keyboard not showing up immediately
  • Preferences -> font closes app

Requested features

20 requests
  • Add return/enter key
  • Batch add characters to collections
  • Multi-font support
  • Unicode 18.0 support
  • Add Unicode 17.0
Show 15 more
  • Ability to select characters with single click
  • Add 'raised to the power of x' symbol
  • Add superscripts in letter, equation, and inequality form
  • Option to format characters (LTR/RTL)
  • Make fonts usable in 'Unicode'
  • Implement custom font API
  • Search for character option
  • Search by character name
  • Add Sutton SignWriting block
  • Add symbol search
  • Update UI with SF symbols
  • Add dark mode support
  • Rename collections
  • Backup and Restore collections
  • Put collections on top of list when using as keyboard

xKeyboard

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes when trying to delete/edit keys
  • Installed keyboards don't show custom layouts
  • App crashes on certain script/language changes

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add ability to export/share custom keyboards
  • Improve keyboard customization workflow
  • Implement swipe typing and autocorrect
  • Add more language/script support
  • Allow creating custom characters/symbols

In-app purchases

None

CharMap

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

xKeyboard

Subscriptions2
  • VIP - 1 Month$0.291 Month
  • VIP - 1 Year$2.991 Year
One-time1
  • VIP - Lifetime$8.99

Questions

Is CharMap free?
CharMap is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is xKeyboard free?
xKeyboard is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, CharMap or xKeyboard?
CharMap is rated higher. CharMap averages 4.0 out of 5 from 57 ratings, while xKeyboard averages 3.2 from 181 ratings.
Do CharMap or xKeyboard have ads?
Neither CharMap nor xKeyboard shows ads.
Which is updated more often, CharMap or xKeyboard?
CharMap ships an update every 4 months, and xKeyboard monthly. Most recently, CharMap was updated on November 1, 2026 and xKeyboard on November 3, 2026.

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