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Ukelele vs XKey

Side-by-side comparison for macOS

Ukelele

7.0
Developer Tools

Unicode keyboard layout editor

XKey

8.0
Utilities

Vietnamese input method engine

Metric Ukelele XKey
Category Developer Tools Utilities
AI Score 7.0 8.0
30-day Installs 103 102
90-day Installs 288 231
365-day Installs 1.6K 1.0K
Version 3.6.1 1.2.25,20261011
Auto-updates Yes Yes
Deprecated No No
GitHub Stars 106 357
GitHub Forks 6 40
Open Issues 9 -
License — MIT
Language Objective-C Swift
Last GitHub Commit 5y ago 7mo ago
First Seen Aug 9, 2023 Feb 7, 2026

Reviews

Ukelele

Ukelele is a powerful tool for creating and customizing Unicode keyboard layouts on macOS. It allows users to design layouts that support multiple languages, symbols, and complex scripts, making it ideal for developers, polyglots, and anyone needing precise keyboard control.

Ukelele enables users to design and customize Unicode keyboard layouts for macOS.

Pros

  • + Enables highly customizable Unicode keyboard layouts
  • + Supports multiple languages and complex scripts
  • + Free and open-source

Cons

  • - Moderate GitHub activity with some open issues
  • - Potential compatibility issues with newer macOS versions

XKey

XKey is an open-source Vietnamese input method engine for macOS, providing a lightweight and effective way to type Vietnamese. It supports multiple keyboard layouts and integrates seamlessly with macOS, benefiting users who need to input Vietnamese regularly.

Enables users to input Vietnamese characters on macOS with support for various keyboard layouts.

Pros

  • + Open-source with active maintenance
  • + Supports multiple keyboard layouts
  • + Seamless macOS integration
  • + Auto-update feature

Cons

  • - Name may cause confusion with NSA's XKeyscore
  • - Specialized for Vietnamese input