True Split vs Alice Keyboards: Which Should You Actually Buy?

Shopping for an ergonomic keyboard lands you on two questions fast: should it be a true split (two separate halves) or an Alice (one angled board)? And can you keep your numpad? Here's the thing nobody tells you upfront: those are the same question wearing different hats. Both ask how far from a normal keyboard you're willing to go.

What a True Split Actually Buys You

Two separate halves let you park your hands at shoulder width with your wrists straight — no more angling your wrists outward (ulnar deviation) to reach keys designed for narrower shoulders. If your complaint is "cramped," especially with big hands, this is the fix. It's the single biggest ergonomic upgrade a keyboard can offer.

Add tenting (tilting each half so the inner edge rises) and you also un-twist your forearms out of the flat-palms-down position. Most of our split picks tent; a couple need a kit.

The costs are real, though:

• A relearning curve. Plan on 1–3 weeks back to full speed — longer for columnar layouts with straight key columns.
• Desk space. Two halves plus the gap between them eat more desk than one board.
• Money. True splits start around $180 and climb past $500.
• The numpad. Almost no true split keeps one. The split-world answer is layers — a function key that turns the right half into a numpad. It works, but if you do real data entry, it's a compromise you feel daily.

What an Alice Buys You

An Alice keeps the familiar staggered rows of a normal keyboard but splits and angles the two halves in a single case, with a gap in the middle. Your wrists stay straighter, but everything else about typing feels like home: near-zero learning curve, one-piece simplicity, smaller desk footprint, and much lower prices ($90–$220 on our page).

The honest limitation: your hands stay at shoulder-narrow width. An Alice softens the cramped feeling rather than solving it. For mild wrist discomfort and a tight budget, that's plenty. For genuinely cramped hands on a full-size board, it's a half measure.

The Numpad Question

None of the six true splits on our page has a numpad — not one. The ergo industry decided years ago that splits are for minimalists, and the numpad didn't survive the cut.

Alice boards can keep a numpad, because they're still one board. But only one of our three does: the FEKER Alice98 (~$90), which is exactly why it earned its "Best Alice with numpad" slot. The V10 Max and Q10 Max are both numpad-free.

Who actually needs the numpad? Spreadsheet and data-entry people, obviously — but also anyone whose fingers just live there. Muscle memory is a legitimate requirement, not a failure of imagination. If losing the numpad sounds like losing a limb, believe yourself.

The Empty Quadrant

Here's the gap in the market: a true split with a numpad barely exists off the shelf. Want maximum ergonomics and a numpad? You're looking at custom builds, exotic imports, or bolting a standalone numpad next to your right half (which, honestly, works fine and keeps the numpad where your right hand already is).

Until someone builds it, you pick your compromise — which brings us to the actual decision.

So Which Are You?

• "My shoulders and hands feel cramped; I type all day." → True split. Budget on-ramp: the Keychron Q11 (~$205) keeps a familiar layout while giving you real shoulder-width spacing. Ready to commit: the ZSA Moonlander (~$365) or MoErgo Glove80 (~$399).
• "I want comfort without relearning to type." → Alice. The Keychron V10 Max (~$115) for wireless versatility, the Keychron Q10 Max (~$220) if you want the premium machined build.
• "My wrists hurt and I'm keeping my numpad." → FEKER Alice98 (~$90). It's the only board on the page that does both, and at ninety bucks it's the cheapest experiment here.
• "I want it all." → Doesn't exist off the shelf. Decide which compromise hurts less: layers instead of a numpad, or an Alice instead of a true split.

Bottom Line

A true split fixes "cramped" and an Alice fixes "achey" — and the numpad question usually makes the decision for you. Figure out which pain is yours, check the current top picks, and don't overthink the rest. The wrong ergonomic keyboard is still more comfortable than the flat board that got you here.