Sticky Keys: what it is and how to turn it off

Sticky Keys is an accessibility setting in Windows and macOS that lets you press a shortcut one key at a time: Shift, Ctrl, Alt or the Windows key stays held after you let go, until you press the next key. Pressing Shift five times in a row turns it on, which is why its box pops up in games. To turn it off on Windows 11, open Settings, Accessibility, Keyboard and switch off Sticky keys. To stop it coming back, open Sticky keys there and switch off its keyboard shortcut too.

Keyboard test

Normally you hold Ctrl down while you press C. With Sticky Keys on, you press Ctrl and let go, and Windows or macOS holds it for you until the next key, so Ctrl and then C still copies. The same shortcut, Shift pressed five times, turns the setting on and off.

How to tell it is on

Windows beeps and asks whether you want to turn on Sticky Keys after you press Shift several times, for example to sprint or crouch in a game.
A letter comes out as a capital although you pressed Shift long before it.
Clicking selects several files at once, because Ctrl or Shift is still held for you.
On a Mac, the symbol of the held key (⇧, ⌃, ⌥ or ⌘) can show in a corner of the screen.

1. Turn it off on Windows 11

Press the Windows key + U, or open Start, Settings, Accessibility.
Under Interaction, select Keyboard.
Switch off Sticky keys.
Select Sticky keys itself to open its options, and switch off Keyboard shortcut for Sticky keys. Shift pressed five times then does nothing, in games too.

2. Windows 10 and the Control Panel

On Windows 10, open Start, Settings, Ease of Access, Keyboard. Switch off Use Sticky Keys and clear Allow the shortcut key to start Sticky Keys. On either version, the Control Panel route works too: Ease of Access Center, Make the keyboard easier to use, then clear Turn on Sticky Keys, select Set up Sticky Keys and clear Turn on Sticky Keys when SHIFT is pressed five times.

Turn it off right now, or at the sign-in screen

Press Shift five times again: the same shortcut that turned Sticky Keys on turns it off. Pressing two keys at the same time, such as Ctrl and Shift, also turns it off, if that option is on in its settings. If you cannot type your password, select the Accessibility button (Ease of Access on Windows 10) in the lower-right corner of the sign-in screen and switch off Sticky keys there.

Why it keeps popping up in games

Many games put sprint, crouch or walk on Shift, so five quick taps happen often. Each time, Windows opens a box asking whether to turn on Sticky Keys, and the box takes the focus from the game. Switching off the keyboard shortcut in step 1 or 2 stops the box for good, and Sticky Keys stays off until you turn it on in Settings. Filter Keys has its own shortcut, the right Shift key held for eight seconds, and needs the same treatment: see how to turn off Filter Keys.

3. On a Mac

Open the Apple menu, System Settings, Accessibility, then Keyboard.
Switch off Sticky Keys.
To stop Shift turning it back on, click the info button next to Sticky Keys and switch off Press the Shift key five times to toggle Sticky Keys.
Option + Command + F5 opens a panel that switches Sticky Keys on or off, as does pressing Touch ID three times quickly on a Mac or Magic Keyboard that has it.

Not Sticky Keys?

If keys ignore quick presses, or only type when you hold them down, that is Filter Keys: see how to turn off Filter Keys. If a key is physically sticky after a spilled drink, see how to clean a keyboard. If Shift, Ctrl or Alt still seems stuck with Sticky Keys off, press it once on the keyboard test and let go: if it still shows under Held now, the keyboard itself is holding it down.

Sources: Microsoft, Windows keyboard shortcuts for accessibility, Make your mouse, keyboard, and other input devices easier to use and the STICKYKEYS settings; Apple, Change Keyboard settings for accessibility on Mac.