The Magic Keyboard Is Getting a Makeover Nobody Asked For While the Feature Mac Owners Actually Want Is Still Missing

Apple has updated four Magic Keyboard models to replace text labels on several keys with symbols, bringing the peripheral lineup in line with changes the company made to its laptop keyboards earlier this year.

The revised keyboards replace the written labels on the tab, Caps Lock, Shift, Return, and Delete keys with glyphs.

On the full-size models that include a numeric keypad, additional keys follow suit: home, page up, page down, end, clear, and enter all lose their text in favor of symbols.

Four models updated

The affected products are the standard Magic Keyboard, the Magic Keyboard with Touch ID, and the Magic Keyboard with Touch ID and Numeric Keypad in both white and black key configurations.

The only U.S. English model left unchanged is the Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keypad, which lacks Touch ID and continues to use text labels on those keys.

Apple made the same shift on the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, and MacBook Neo when those laptops launched in March 2026, so the external keyboard update follows a design direction the company had already established across its portable lineup.

Also: The $599 Mac mini that felt almost too good to be true is now an $899 computer less than two years later with the same design

Broader geographic reach

Because the U.S. English keyboard layout serves as the default in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore, among other countries, the labeling change affects buyers well beyond the United States.

Apple has used glyphs on British English and other European layouts for some time, so customers in those regions will already recognize the symbols.

The update is cosmetic rather than functional. None of the keys behave differently, and the underlying layout is unchanged.

For users accustomed to text labels, the glyph-only approach may require a brief adjustment period, particularly on the numeric keypad models where more keys are affected.

Some users have noted the change does not address other longstanding requests for the Magic Keyboard line, including backlighting, multi-device Bluetooth pairing, or an adjustable tilt angle.

The updated keyboards are available now through Apple’s online store at the same prices as the previous models.