How to Add a Japanese Keyboard on iPhone

Add Japanese on iPhone from Settings → General → Keyboard → Keyboards → Add New Keyboard. Select Japanese, then choose the layout offered for your preferred method. Kana is designed around Japanese mobile input; Romaji uses a familiar QWERTY layout.

Add the keyboard

1. Open Settings.
2. Choose General.
3. Select Keyboard, then Keyboards.
4. Tap Add New Keyboard.
5. Select Japanese.
6. Enable the Japanese layout or layouts you want and finish the setup.

Adding a keyboard does not change the iPhone’s display language. It only makes another input option available in text fields.

Switch to Japanese while typing

Open an app with a text field. Touch and hold the Globe or keyboard-switch key, then select Japanese. A quick tap can cycle through enabled keyboards. If too many keyboards make switching slow, remove unused ones from the same Keyboards settings screen.

Kana layout and flick input

The Japanese Kana layout commonly groups sounds by rows. A key may show あ; tapping or flicking in different directions selects あ・い・う・え・お. The か key similarly provides the k-row.

Flick input is efficient once the directional positions become automatic. Begin slowly and watch the popup choices. Small Kana and voiced marks are accessed through the layout’s modifier controls; their exact visual position can change with iOS design updates.

Romaji layout

Romaji uses Latin QWERTY keys. Type konnichiwa to produce こんにちは in the active Japanese input mode. This option is familiar to desktop typists, but it usually needs more taps than fluent flick input on a phone.

Neither layout is inherently more correct. Choose the method that matches your existing skill and device use.

Select Kanji candidates

As you enter a reading, iPhone displays conversion candidates above the keyboard. Select the candidate that matches the intended word. Japanese contains many homophones, so inspect the actual Kanji rather than relying on its position.

For a name or uncommon term, you may need to type a longer reading before the desired candidate appears. Providing more context can help an input method rank candidates, but verification remains the writer’s responsibility.

Troubleshoot the iPhone keyboard

If Japanese is not present when you hold the Globe key, return to Settings and confirm it appears in the Keyboards list. If the keyboard shows a layout you did not expect, you may have enabled Kana instead of Romaji or vice versa; add the other Japanese layout.

If predictive candidates seem wrong, first confirm the Kana reading. A small っ, long vowel, or ん boundary changes the reading and therefore the candidate list.

Which option should a beginner use?

Choose Romaji if you already type Japanese readings on a computer and want immediate familiarity. Choose Kana if you plan to type Japanese frequently on a phone and are willing to learn flick positions. You can enable both, compare them for a week, and remove the one you do not use.

Apple changes interface details over time. If the labels on your device differ, use the official Apple guide linked below as the current reference.