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Head to head · Prices checked Oct 29, 2026

Keychron Q5 Max vs Q1 HE

Get the Keychron Q1 HE for hall effect and rapid trigger.

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Quick verdict

Which one should you get?

Get the

Keychron Q5 Max

Build quality in the top 5% of 96% boards under $300.

Rules this board out

  • South-facing LEDs. Shine-through legends stay dark, and some sculpted keycaps can clip the LED.
  • Missing ISO-FR, ISO-ES, ISO-IT. The other board is sold in those layouts.
  • Compact full-size layout. The numpad is present, the gaps of a full-size board are not.

Get the

Keychron Q1 HE

Hall effect

Build quality in the top 5% of 75% boards under $200.

Rules this board out

  • Magnetic switches only. Standard MX switches will not fit.
  • South-facing LEDs. Shine-through legends stay dark, and some sculpted keycaps can clip the LED.
  • No numpad.

What actually differs

The differences that matter

Skip the 40-row spec sheet. These are the specs that change how each board feels, sounds, and fits your desk.

Keychron Q5 Max

Keychron Q1 HE

  • Layout size

    96%

    75%

  • Hall effect (magnetic)

    No

    Yes

    Adjustable actuation helps in games and not in normal typing

  • Rapid trigger

    No

    Yes

    Faster resets help in games and not in normal typing

  • Max polling rate

    1,000 Hz

    8,000 Hz

    Higher polling helps competitive FPS and does nothing for typing

  • Switch options

    Clicky, Linear, Tactile

    Clicky, Linear, Magnetic, Tactile

KeebFinder scores

How we score
  • Keychron Q5 Max
  • Keychron Q1 HE
Performance
81
100
Build quality
91
90
Productivity
97
97
Customizability
98
98
Portability
55
81

What they share

  • Connection: Bluetooth, 2.4 GHz, Wired
  • Hot-swappable
  • Battery: 4,000 mAh
  • Case material: Aluminum
  • Knob
  • QMK
See every spec side by side

From real owners

What owners say

Ratings and quotes collected from verified store reviews, including the critical ones.

Keychron Q5 Max

5.0

4 owner reviews

Praise
“I don't like writing reviews but I do like reading them lol. What I am trying to say is that don't sleep in this keyboard. I even liked it more than my Lemokey L3. I got the one with the side printed keys and banana switches. This is my 3rd keychron keyboard.”
Raul B.Verified buyer· via Keychron

Keychron Q1 HE

4.8

20 owner reviews

Praise
“Neither big legs nor small legs. No legs at all 🤣 For me, this is not what I've expected from keychron, because every keyboard has legs.”
YurkoVerified buyer· via Keychron
Critique
“I love this thing. I wish there were these changes: Cable mode was switch in position closest to the outer edge of keyboard. Extra usb-c which is another port, I'd like to plug my 2fa device in there. Sort out why the programmer doesn't work under arch linux…”
Mawlzz· via Keychron

Full specs

Keychron Q5 Max vs Q1 HE specs

Every tracked spec, side by side. Rows marked with a dot differ between the boards.

12 of 29 specs differ

Keychron Q5 Max

Keychron Q1 HE

Typing & switches

Switch options

Clicky, Linear, Tactile
Clicky, Linear, Magnetic, Tactile

Hall effect (magnetic)

No
Yes

Rapid trigger

No
Yes

Hot-swappable

Yes
Yes

Mount style

Gasket Mount, PCB Mount, Plate Mount
Gasket Mount, PCB Mount

Sound dampening

Yes
Yes

Screw-in stabilizers

Yes
Yes

Layout

Layout size

96%
75%

Layout standard

ANSI, ISO, ISO-DE, ISO-Nordic, ISO-SW, ISO-UK
ANSI, ISO, ISO-DE, ISO-ES, ISO-FR, ISO-IT, ISO-Nordic, ISO-SW, ISO-UK, JIS

Ergonomics

Standard
Standard

Knob

Yes
Yes

Display

None
None

Media keys

Yes
Yes

Connectivity & battery

Connection

Bluetooth, 2.4 GHz, Wired
Bluetooth, 2.4 GHz, Wired

Max polling rate

1,000 Hz
8,000 HzBetter

Battery

4,000 mAh
4,000 mAh

USB-C

Yes
Yes

Build & materials

Case material

Aluminum
Aluminum

Plate material

Polycarbonate
Aluminum, Polycarbonate

Keycaps

PBT
ABS, PBT

Weight

2,215 g
4,000 g

Dimensions

23 x 145 x 408 mm
23 x 145 x 328 mm

Typing angle

5°
5°, 6°, 7°

Backlight

RGB, south-facing
RGB, south-facing

Firmware & software

QMK

Yes
Yes

VIA

Yes
Yes

N-key rollover

Yes
Yes

Mac & Windows

Yes
Yes

Extras

Released

2023
2023

For EU buyers

ISO layouts by store

Which stores sell ISO-DE, UK, and the other regional layouts.

Keychron Q5 Max

  • Keychron

    ISO-DE, ISO-UK, ISO-Nordic, ISO-SW

    In stockShips to you

  • Keychron (DE)

    ISO-DE, ISO-UK, ISO-SW

    In stockDoes not ship to you

Keychron Q1 HE

  • Keychron

    ISO-DE, ISO-UK, ISO-Nordic, ISO-SW

    In stockShips to you

  • Input Gear

    ISO-DE

    Out of stockShips to you

  • Keychron (DE)

    ISO-DE, ISO-UK, ISO-FR, ISO-ES, ISO-IT, ISO-SW

    In stockDoes not ship to you

  • Keychron (DE)

    ISO-DE, ISO-FR, ISO-ES

    In stockDoes not ship to you

Where to buy

Compare prices

Live prices from the stores we track, cheapest in-stock offer first.

Prices in USD are converted to your currency and can change at any time. KeebFinder may earn a commission when you buy through these links, at no extra cost to you.

Lowest price across stores, Amazon excluded.

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