The Unnecessary Button
Windows 10 is designed to work on both traditional desktop PCs and touchscreen tablets (like the Microsoft Surface). Because of this hybrid approach, the operating system often includes touchscreen-specific UI elements even if you are using a standard mouse and keyboard. One of the most obvious examples is the “Touch Keyboard” button—a small icon resembling a keyboard that sits next to the clock in your Taskbar system tray.
Clicking this icon slides a massive virtual keyboard up onto your screen. If you do not own a touchscreen monitor and type exclusively on a physical, mechanical keyboard, this button is entirely useless. It is simply taking up valuable space on your Taskbar. You can easily hide it.
How to Hide the Touch Keyboard Button
You can disable this icon directly from the Taskbar’s right-click context menu.
- Look at the bottom of your screen where your Taskbar is located.
- Find an empty, blank space on the Taskbar (do not click on an app icon).
- Right-click on the empty space. A tall context menu will appear.
- Look up the menu for the option labelled Show touch keyboard button. It will likely have a small checkmark next to it.
- Click on “Show touch keyboard button” to uncheck it.
The keyboard icon will instantly vanish from your system tray. If you ever buy a touchscreen monitor in the future and want the virtual keyboard back, simply right-click the Taskbar again and re-check the option.