Comparison

Tapeze (Typing) vs Sidekey

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

Head to head
About

Tapeze (Typing)

Features
Read full description

Tapeze is a compact gesture keyboard. Nine large keys hold the most common letters. Everything else — the rest of the alphabet, numbers, symbols and punctuation — lives in short swipes from those same nine keys. Because the keys are large, you hit them without looking. Because every swipe starts from a key you already know, the layout becomes muscle memory instead of a hunt. HOW IT WORKS • Tap a key to type the letter in its centre • Swipe from a key toward a neighbouring letter to type it • Swipe out and back for a capital • Draw a small circle on a key for its capital • Sweep sideways across three keys for a space, downward to delete • Swipe up from the space strip to reveal the symbols BUILT AROUND YOUR THUMBS Space and delete have no dedicated keys. They are full-width strips along the bottom and top edges, so they sit under your thumb wherever your hand rests. Swipe along the delete strip to remove a whole word; swipe along the space strip to move the cursor a character at a time. CAPITALS THAT BEHAVE Sentences capitalise themselves — at the start of a document, after a new line, and once a sentence ends. Any gesture the keyboard reads as a capital resolves to a letter, so a rounded stroke never leaves a stray symbol behind. MAKE IT YOURS Resize the keyboard, move the controls to either side, hide the on-key labels once you have learned the layout, and switch the gesture trail on or off. PRIVACY Tapeze does not collect your data. What you type is not recorded, not stored and not sent anywhere. Full Access is required so the keyboard can read the layout settings you choose in the app and paste from the clipboard — nothing leaves your device.

About

Sidekey

Transform your iPhone into a wireless keyboard and custom shortcut pad for your Mac or Windows PC. Design your ideal layout with custom keys, shortcuts, and multiple layers. Control your computer seamlessly over Wi-Fi without any extra hardware.

Highlights
  • Customizable wireless keyboard
  • Create custom shortcuts and combos
  • Multiple layers and modes
  • Trackpad functionality
  • Voice typing to computer
  • Quick QR code pairing
  • Works with Mac and Windows
Features
Read full description

Sidekey turns your iPhone into a wireless keyboard, trackpad and shortcut pad for your own computer. Tap keys on your phone and they type on your Mac or Windows PC over your local Wi‑Fi — no extra hardware, no cables. NEW IN 1.1 • Made for iPhone Duo — unfold for a big keyboard on one side of the fold and a trackpad on the other, and swap them with one tap. Every mode gets its own big-screen layout. • Laptop keyboard mode — a full computer keyboard on the inner screen that matches the connected computer, Mac or Windows. • Landscape on any iPhone — keys, trackpad and sidebar rearrange themselves. FEATURES • Voice typing — dictate on your phone and send the text straight to your computer • Custom key designer — make your own keys, shortcuts and layouts • Shortcuts & combos — Cmd/Ctrl/Alt/Shift, function keys, media keys, and left/right-specific modifiers • Trackpad — use your phone as a touchpad with left and right buttons • Multiple computers — pair several and switch between them in one tap • Modes for every job — a shortcut deck, a trackpad, a full keyboard, and Codex Micro for Claude Code and Codex • Quick pairing — scan a QR code once; it reconnects automatically • Private by design — no account, no tracking, nothing sent to the developer HOW IT WORKS Sidekey works together with a small, free desktop helper you run on the computer you want to control. Put both devices on the same Wi‑Fi, scan a QR code once to pair, and you're connected. Pairing is secured with a token, and your keystrokes travel directly to your own computer — never through us. REQUIRES THE FREE DESKTOP HELPER Sidekey needs the free Sidekey helper running on your Mac or Windows computer. Download it from the link on our support page. Questions or ideas? We'd love to hear from you.

Screenshots

Tapeze (Typing)1 screens
Sidekey4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Tapeze (Typing) at monthly against Sidekey's every 4 months. On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Tapeze (Typing) against 5.0 for Sidekey. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 1 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Tapeze (Typing) ships an update monthly, Sidekey every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on November 10, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 8 level
Tapeze (Typing) versus Sidekey: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTapeze (Typing)Sidekey
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings)
Number of ratings11
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 4 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS16.016.0
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGiulio MecocciKaihong Chen

In-app purchases

None

Tapeze (Typing)

No in-app purchases

None

Sidekey

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Tapeze (Typing) free?
Tapeze (Typing) is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Sidekey free?
Sidekey is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Tapeze (Typing) or Sidekey?
Tapeze (Typing) and Sidekey are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 1 and 1 ratings respectively.
Do Tapeze (Typing) or Sidekey have ads?
Neither Tapeze (Typing) nor Sidekey shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Tapeze (Typing) or Sidekey?
Tapeze (Typing) ships an update monthly, and Sidekey every 4 months. Most recently, Tapeze (Typing) was updated on November 10, 2026 and Sidekey on November 5, 2026.

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