Microsoft’s SwiftKey is Back on iOS

Microsoft’s SwiftKey keyboard has returned to the App Store(Opens in a new window) after the company removed it from the App Store last month.

It was not explained at the time why the app had been taken down but ZDNet reported(Opens in a new window) that it could have been due to the difficulty of integrating with Apple’s policies around the safeguarding of its so-called walled garden.  

SwiftKey is an intelligent keyboard that learns users’ writing styles, adapting to predict and suggest regularly used slang, nicknames, and emojis. The app also permits users to customize their keyboard with dozens of themes to choose from, and it is possible to send GIFs on the app.

Speaking to The Verge, a Microsoft spokeswoman said that the relisting was “based on customer feedback,” and urged people to visit Support.SwiftKey.com(Opens in a new window) for further information.

Vishu Nath, the company’s VP and GM of OneNote and the Office product group tweeted(Opens in a new window) that the Keyboard was back on iOS, and advised users to “stay tuned to what the team has in store” for the app.

Tweet(Opens in a new window)

And in a move likely to please fans of the Keyboard, Pedram Rezaei, Microsoft’s CTO of its maps and local service division, tweeted(Opens in a new window) that the company “will be investing heavily” in SwiftKey.

SwiftKey first launched on Android in 2010 and on iOS in 2014 with the release of iOS 8 which allowed users to install third-party keyboards. Microsoft acquired it in 2016 for $250 million. SwiftKey for iOS has not received an update since 11 August 2021, when it introduced Emoji search, allowing users to find emojis easier. While it was taken off iOS in October, the app has stayed available(Opens in a new window) on Android. 

Other popular virtual keyboards include the PCMag Editors’ Choice Google Gboard (free), the massively multilingual Fleksy (free), the thumb-typing friendly Thumbly Keyboard ($1.99), and the typewriter mimicking Hanx Writer (free).