How to Lock the Keyboard on Windows 10/11

There are many reasons you may want to temporarily lock your keyboard to prevent accidental key presses, for example, when cleaning your laptop, watching a movie, stepping away from your desk, or keeping curious kids or pets from interacting with your computer.

Contrary to what you might think, Windows does not have a built-in “disable keyboard” button. However, achieving this is still easily with a few tools and tricks. This guide will walk you through one effective way you can use to lock and unlock your keyboard safely on both Windows 10 and Windows 11.

Use Filter Keys to Lock the Keyboard

Filter Keys are an accessibility feature in Windows designed to help people who have difficulty typing due to shaky hands, slow movement, or accidental key presses.

Step 2. Navigate to Keyboard

• Go to Accessibility > Keyboard.

• If you are on Windows 10, go to Ease of Access > Keyboard instead.

Step 3. Turn on Filter Keys

Turn the toggle for Filter keys to On.

Step 4. Set More Settings

Expand its options to keep adjusting other settings by clicking on the arrow next to the toggle switch.

For a near-total lock, turn on these three options:

• Keyboard shortcut for Filter keys

• Ignore quick keystrokes (slow keys)

• Ignore unintended keystrokes (bounce keys)

• Ignore repeated keystrokes (repeat keys)

Additional: Unlock the Keyboard

• Simply press and hold the right Shift key on the keyboard for 8 seconds to turn off the Filter keys and unlock your keyboard.

• Or return to the Settings menu mentioned above and toggle the switch to Off.

Conclusion

This is how to lock or unlock the keyboard on Windows 10 & 11 using the Filter keys. While it is not a perfect hard lock, this will make the keyboard practically unusable, as most normal typing will be ignored, helping you maintain security and prevent accidents with ease.