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Head to head · Prices checked Oct 28, 2026

Keychron K8 HE vs Q1

Get the Keychron K8 HE for hall effect and rapid trigger.

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Quick verdict

Which one should you get?

Get the

Keychron K8 HE

Hall effect

Build quality in the top 5% of 80% boards under $150.

Rules this board out

  • Magnetic switches only. Standard MX switches will not fit.
  • North-facing LEDs. Cherry-profile keycaps can hit the switch housing.
  • Missing ISO-DE, ISO-UK, ISO-FR. The other board is sold in those layouts.
  • No numpad.

Get the

Keychron Q1

Build quality in the top 5% of 75% boards under $150.

Rules this board out

  • 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 K8 HE

Keychron Q1

  • Layout size

    80%

    75%

  • Hall effect (magnetic)

    Yes

    No

    Adjustable actuation helps in games and not in normal typing

  • Rapid trigger

    Yes

    No

    Faster resets help in games and not in normal typing

  • Connection

    Wired, Bluetooth, 2.4 GHz

    Wired

    Wireless for several devices and wired for lower latency

  • Case material

    ABS, Aluminum, Wood

    Aluminum

KeebFinder scores

How we score
  • Keychron K8 HE
  • Keychron Q1
Performance
92
72
Build quality
87
89
Productivity
94
97
Customizability
89
98
Portability
76
65

What they share

  • Hot-swappable
  • Max polling rate: 1,000 Hz
  • QMK
  • VIA
  • Sound dampening
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 K8 HE

5.0

5 owner reviews

Praise
“Order arrived quickly with no damage to the packaging. Has a very premium feel and overall excellent piece of hardware.”
mitchell c.Verified buyer· via Keychron

Keychron Q1

4.9

10 owner reviews

Praise
“Very pretty and good quality, only con is it's kind of pingy but it's easy to mod and fix with some tape, force break mod.”
Nico R.Verified buyer· via Keychron

Full specs

Keychron K8 HE vs Q1 specs

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

18 of 29 specs differ

Keychron K8 HE

Keychron Q1

Typing & switches

Switch options

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

Hall effect (magnetic)

Yes
No

Rapid trigger

Yes
No

Hot-swappable

Yes
Yes

Mount style

Tray Mount
Gasket Mount, Plate Mount

Sound dampening

Yes
Yes

Screw-in stabilizers

Yes
Yes

Layout

Layout size

80%
75%

Layout standard

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

Ergonomics

Standard
Standard

Knob

No
Yes

Display

None
None

Media keys

No
Yes

Connectivity & battery

Connection

Wired, Bluetooth, 2.4 GHz
Wired

Max polling rate

1,000 Hz
1,000 Hz

Battery

4,000 mAh
Wired only

USB-C

Yes
Yes

Build & materials

Case material

ABS, Aluminum, Wood
Aluminum

Plate material

Aluminum
Aluminum, Polycarbonate, Steel

Keycaps

PBT
ABS, PBT

Weight

1,009 g
1,825 g

Dimensions

43 x 366 x 133 mm
22 x 145 x 328 mm

Typing angle

4°, 5°
5°

Backlight

RGB, north-facing
RGB, south-facing

Firmware & software

QMK

Yes
Yes

VIA

Yes
Yes

N-key rollover

Yes
No

Mac & Windows

Yes
Yes

Extras

Released

2025
2022

For EU buyers

ISO layouts by store

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

Keychron K8 HE

  • Keychron (DE)

    ISO

    In stockDoes not ship to you

Keychron Q1

  • Keychron

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

    In stockShips to you

  • MK

    ISO

    Out of stockShips to you

  • Keychron (DE)

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

    Out of stockDoes not ship to you

  • Keychron (DE)

    ISO

    Out of 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.

Keychron Q14 stores

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