When I press my @ key, the ” symbol appears onscreen instead, Why is this?

If the wrong characters appear when you type (for example, @ and “ are swapped), your computer is likely using the wrong keyboard layout. This commonly happens when Windows switches to the US keyboard layout instead of UK.

If you’re using a UK Windows‑layout keyboard (or another non‑Apple keyboard) with a Mac, you may still see swapped characters even after choosing the correct input source. This is because macOS does not fully support the UK‑specific key placement used on many Windows keyboards. As a result, certain symbols — including @ and ” — may not appear in the expected positions.

How to fix the keyboard layout (Windows 10 & Windows 11)

1. Open Settings from the Start menu.
2. Go to Time & language.
3. Select Language & region.
4. Under Preferred languages, click your language (e.g., English (United Kingdom)).
5. Select Keyboard or Options.
6. Make sure United Kingdom is listed as the keyboard layout.
   • If US is listed, remove it.
7. Ensure United Kingdom is set as the default keyboard.

Quick check using the taskbar

Look at the bottom‑right corner of your screen:

• If you see ENG US, your keyboard is set to US.
• Click it and switch to ENG UK.

Why this happens

Windows sometimes adds multiple keyboard layouts automatically, especially after updates or when certain apps request them. When the layout switches, the key positions change — including the @ and ” keys.

Reviewed: 12/01/2026