What is the difference between mechanical keyboard switch types?
How the switch registers a keypress and what it feels like doing so — described by three broad families, plus a set of measurements that matter more than the family name.
The three families:
Linear. Smooth travel from top to bottom with no tactile change and no click. Quiet, consistent, and favoured for fast repeated actuation. The key registers partway down with nothing signalling that it has.
Tactile. A deliberate bump partway through the travel, indicating the actuation point. You feel when the key registers, which allows typing without bottoming out and is why many typists prefer them. Quiet enough for shared spaces.
Clicky. A tactile bump plus an audible click, produced mechanically by a separate component. Satisfying, and genuinely disruptive to anyone nearby — which is worth considering honestly before buying one for an office.
The measurements that actually differentiate switches:
Actuation force, in grams — how hard you must press. Lighter switches reduce effort and increase accidental presses.
Actuation point — how far down the key registers, typically around 2mm.
Total travel — usually around 4mm on full-size switches, considerably less on low-profile ones.
Whether the tactile bump is early or late in the travel, which changes the feel far more than the family label suggests.
Other things that shape how a keyboard feels, and which people attribute wrongly to the switch:
The case and plate material, which determine acoustics and flex to a surprising degree.
Keycap material and profile — thicker keycaps sound and feel different, and profile changes hand position.
Lubrication, which smooths travel and removes scratchiness.
Sound dampening inside the case.
Hot-swap sockets, which allow switches to be changed without soldering — the single feature that makes experimenting practical.
Optical and Hall effect switches register without physical contact, offering durability and, for Hall effect, adjustable actuation depth, which has become popular in gaming keyboards.
The honest summary: switch family narrows the choice; the rest of the build determines the experience.