iPad won't show keyboard - here are the solutions

Today I got a request from a relative with some photos of an iPad with Safari open. At first I wasn't sure what it was about, but then the next message came:

The iPad no longer shows me a keyboard.

I admit that I haven't had the problem yet, but a call to the appropriate Apple support page gave me two possible causes and solutions.

For those who don't want to read a lot: A restart solved the problem in our case and the iPad redisplayed the keyboard.

1. The iPad needs a restart

In the first case I couldn't find a real cause. It seems that the iPad sometimes freezes and just forgets to show the keyboard.

This was the case for many users in the Apple forum after they installed an iOS or iPadOS update. In my case, however, it was a brand new iPad 10 with iPadOS 16.3.1 - not a version that you would expect to have teething problems.

Still, the restart helped for us.

Here's a quick jaunt on how to restart iPad because I had to look it up myself:

• iPad without home button (all current models) → Press and hold the top button and one of the volume buttons at the same time, then drag the slider.
• iPad with home button → Hold the top button and then move the slider.

2. A real keyboard or mouse is connected to the iPad

If an iPad doesn't show an onscreen keyboard, it could also be because a Bluetooth keyboard was connected at some point and automatically reconnected to the iPad because it was nearby.

According to one user, after pairing a Logitech mouse with the iPad, the onscreen keyboard stopped appearing on them.

You can quickly check whether this is the reason by going to the control center Turn off the Bluetooth temporarily and see if a keyboard is now displayed on a text input window.

If you want to unpair a connected keyboard from the iPad, you can do this under Settings → Bluetooth.

Other causes?

If you have noticed other causes or you still have ideas how to solve the problem with the missing on-screen keyboard, please leave a comment here.

I am happy to add the good tips at the top of the article so that future readers can benefit from them.

Jen Kleinholz( Founder & Sir Apfelot )

Jens has been running the blog since 2012. He acts as Sir Apfelot for his readers and helps them with technical problems. In his spare time he rides electric unicycles, takes photos (preferably with the iPhone, of course), climbs around in the Hessian mountains or hikes with the family. His articles deal with Apple products, news from the world of drones or solutions to current bugs.