I finally stopped making typos with these underrated Gboard features

I’ve sometimes blamed my phone’s keyboard for my messy typing, whether it’s autocorrect gone rogue or random spaces popping up.

I tried switching to different Android keyboards, hoping that one of them would magically improve my typing. Yet somehow, typos were my constant companion.

Those little mistakes made me look careless in messages, emails, and even work documents. Autocorrect helped, sometimes, but it was inconsistent.

Then I realized: I wasn’t using my phone’s keyboard to its full potential. I would type, hoping autocorrect would save me.

So, I started digging into Gboard’s settings, and it dramatically reduced my typos.

Text correction and suggestion controls

It’s where most of the magic happens

Gboard offers a variety of text correction settings that often get overlooked. You’ll find them in Gboard under Settings > Corrections & suggestions.

You can go to Gboard’s settings by using the keyboard on any texting app and tapping the cog icon.

Turning on options like Suggestion strip and Auto-correction immediately made typing smoother. The suggestion strip offers three likely words as I type, and tapping one feels faster than fixing typos later.

I also activated Auto-capitalization. This minor adjustment helped maintain tidy sentences without requiring me to think about it.

Personal dictionary: A hidden gem

Adding words that autocorrect frequently mangles

I’d always assumed Gboard’s autocorrect just knew what I meant, until it didn’t. It would stubbornly change names, slang, and some abbreviations I use every day.

That’s when I finally discovered the Personal dictionary, a feature buried in the settings.

Under Settings > Dictionary > Personal dictionary, you can add your own words and shortcuts. I added nicknames, project codes, and a few local terms that autocorrect never understood.

After I did this, Gboard no longer tried to “correct” these words to something else.

I realized that many of my typos happened because autocorrect was overzealous. Giving Gboard a list of exceptions stopped it from sabotaging my typing.

What makes things even better is the ability to create text shortcuts. For me, Gboard suggests my full address after typing addr since I added it as a shortcut. It’s like having mini macros built right into the keyboard.

Using the clipboard manager

It is a game-changer

Gboard’s clipboard manager is one of its most underrated features.

I used to copy something and then immediately paste it somewhere, because I knew I would lose it the moment I copied something else. But Gboard can save what I copy indefinitely if I pin it.

Now, I keep my most frequently used snippets right on the keyboard, such as an address, a work response, and even my phone number. It saves me from searching through notes or retyping things from memory.

The clipboard shows recently copied items when I tap the clipboard icon, making multitasking much faster. I never realized how much time I wasted switching between apps until I started using it properly.

Because I had a consistent way to paste accurate text, the number of typos I made while rushing messages dropped immediately. I was no longer relying solely on my memory or autocorrect to get words right.

Multilingual typing without errors

No more autocorrect chaos

Credit: Lucas Gouveia / Android Police

I switch between English and another language multiple times a day, and that usually means endless battles with autocorrect. The keyboard would “fix” words in the other language, leaving my messages looking like gibberish.

While exploring the settings menu, I discovered that Gboard supports multiple languages without requiring a keyboard switch.

In Settings > Languages, you can add as many as you need, and Gboard automatically detects which one you’re typing in based on context.

After enabling both languages, autocorrect improved, and suggestions were more accurate, allowing me to type naturally without switching keyboards every few lines.

It even handles mixed sentences gracefully, like dropping an English word into another language without insisting I’m wrong. The result is a smoother, more natural typing flow that feels effortless.

With Gboard’s multilingual support, I can type naturally, and the keyboard adapts, reducing errors and keeping conversations smooth.

Typing feels natural again

I used to think I needed a third-party keyboard or additional typing tools to type error-free. But Gboard, often preinstalled and overlooked, has almost everything I could want.

The clipboard manager and personal dictionary handled most of my repetitive typing, while smarter suggestions made the whole experience feel faster and more intuitive.

It’s easy to forget that your phone’s keyboard is something you use hundreds of times a day.

Spending a few minutes fine-tuning it paid off far more than I expected. My messages look cleaner, my typos are fewer, and typing on my phone feels effortless.