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I have written many times on this blog that I am a long nails girl with a short nails life. And a huge part of that is typing.

I type, like, too much. I’m an English teacher, a freelancer, and a blogger, so it might be an email to a parent, an article for someone else, or this very post you’re reading. (The good news is it’s made me a super fast typist!)

And, look, there are absolutely ways to have XL nails and still work a desk-based job. 100%. You’re not stuck with short nails if that’s not what feels right for you. 

This post is going to talk this through in a few different ways: I’l start with what, in my opinion, is the best nail shape and length for typing. Then, we’ll look at two strategies for figuring out the nail length that works best for you in a desk job. Here’s the ultimate guide to typing with long nails! 

The best nail length for typing (and some thoughts on shape)

Okay, this is a hot take or whatever, but I think the best nail length for typing is medium squoval nails. 

(If we’re being real, the best nail length for typing is short. But honestly, if you found this post, you’re not trying to have short nails. You’re looking for your longest, most glamorous nails, and I love that for you.) 

Why medium?

Medium is still one of the shorter lengths, really! It means that you can still get the pads of your fingers on the keys without accidentally hitting the next key with your nails. So you don’t really need to change your typing method that much. What you learned in high school keyboarding is still going to work. 

(if you want to go longer, though, we’ll talk strategy.) 

Medium is still enough to visually extend the length of your fingers and to look “done”. It can be done with fake nails or nail extensions if you want. But many people will be able to grow their natural nails to that length with an overlay. 

Why squoval?

I know, I know, squoval is out, blah blah blah. Whatever. How you shape the free edge of your nail is up to you. I like squoval for this because I think they’re the best balance between having the surface area to hit the key but not having square corners that catch the keys around it. I think this matters less if your nails are shorter and more if your nails are longer. 

I don’t love square nails or coffin nails for this reason–I think the sharp corners end up causing extra errors. Oval or almond nails won’t catch the wrong key in the same way, but they give you less surface area to hit the key properly. Again, this doesn’t matter a ton with short or medium nails, but once you’re typing with your nails, you need to be strategic. 

Flare nails are or duck nails are probably your worst option. They’re basically designed to hit the surrounding keys. 

No, I want long or XL nails. How do I type?

Long nails are flattering! They give you the look of long slim fingers and narrow nail beds no matter what you’re working with. 

Okay, basically I have two strategies for you: work up to it or dive in. You may or may not have a choice — if your sister is a nail artist and wants XXL for her wedding in two weeks, you’re diving in whether you like it or not. But if you have a choice, here are your options.

Work up to it and find your personal best length

If you’re working on a style transformation with no particular end date, this is your best way to find the longest nails you can personally type with. Wherever you’re at right now, you can commit to acrylic nails or gel nails, letting them grow out a little more with each set. (I do DIY gel nails with builder gel polish and I think it’s a great choice for beginners!) You can do length enhancements if that’s what your nails need. I wrote about those here: Nail tips vs full cover tips: which is better for beginners?

The beauty of this is that you adjust slowly as your nails grow out. Longer nails require a different typing movement, but you’re adjusting daily as your nails grow out. Going a little bit at a time lets you experiment, too: you may prefer an oval shape or almond shape to minimize clipping other keys. 

And then, as you’re going through your daily activities, you eventually get a sense that, like, okay, this is my max length. I don’t want to go any longer than this if I’m going to be typing all day. 

I think this method gets the best results. You get a nice easy adjustment period, not just in typing but in your workouts, carrying grocery bags, opening cans, all that. (Though, honestly, respect to the girl at the gym powerlifting with XXL coffin shape nails.)

Or…you can dive in. 

​Dive in straight to XL nails for typing

Sometime people have no choice (like you need long nails for a wedding) and sometimes people are impatient. So sometimes you’ve got to go straight from shorter nails to XXL nail tips. I do think this is harder, but honestly, you figure it out! 

Going straight to long tips from a short length will mean an adjustment period! But you’ll still manage in daily life. Your typing speed might suffer a little at the beginning, but here’s what you do: 

Typing with long length or XL+ length nails

Keep your fingers in a straight line and imagine that they don’t bend or can’t bend at all. You want super long fingers to keep the nails themselves out of the way. 

Then, when you’re actually hitting the keys, you’re hitting them with the pads of your fingertips. You shouldn’t really hear the nails at all, because they aren’t hitting the keys. It’s almost like you’re taking your own fingerprint with each keystroke–use that part of your finger. 

I do still think that the different nail shapes will give you different results here: anything with a square shape to the corners is more likely to accidentally catch another key and create an annoying typographical error. Coffin-shaped nails that don’t have that wide blunt top edge, or anyhting with a more taped point to the nail tip shape will probably get you a better result. 

However, nail shape doesn’t matter as much with longer nails, since you’re no longer using them to actually hit the key. 

I’m driving my coworkers crazy! What are the best keyboards for typing with long nails?

So glad you asked! Loud clicky typing is definitely the 2020s version of the girl that wouldn’t stop clicking her pen in class in high school. 

Your best nail length for typing

Okay, your cheapest option if you work on a laptop is a silicone sleeve: 

The one I linked above is the one I have for my Macbook, but you can click through and there’s lots of options for all kinds of laptops. (If you don’t know what size your computer is, measure your screen diagonally!) 

I love this thing for a lot of reasons: quiet typing, yes, but also no crumbs in my keyboard (I have three kids) and you can take it off and clean it with soap and water. I like doing that every couple weeks and having it actually feel clean–I don’t always feel that way about taking a Clorox wipe to my actual keyboard! 

 

They also make silicone covers for wired PC keyboards. These work surprisingly well! My school gave us these during COVID so we weren’t sharing germs in shared classrooms. (We called them keyboard condoms, because spending too much time with teenagers makes you immature). But if you’re in a shared space, this will also work really well to soften the sound of your nails on the keys. 

I don’t recommend the foldable silicone keyboards that will pop up on Amazon if you search silicone keyboard — they aren’t generally sturdy and the experience of typing directly on your desk doesn’t feel great. I also think the elevation of a real keyboard helps with longer nails. If you want a specialized keyboard, you’re better off getting a quiet mechanical keyboard and the silicone cover linked above. One like this: 

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and then add the silicone sleeve. 

I hope this post empowered you to have the nails you want! Pin this post to come back to it.