Non-backlit keycaps: custom keycaps for 60% to 100%

Custom non-backlit keycaps suit keyboards where the legends are read in room light, not lit by LEDs. Opaque legends stay unlit even on RGB boards, and a good choice rests on the plastic, the legend method, a match with a 60% to 100% UK ISO or ANSI keyboard and the right profile.

What non-backlit keycaps do

A non-backlit keycap carries a legend that no light passes through. That changes how the keyboard reads, how it looks under lighting and which designs are possible. Each of these follows from the way the cap is made, not from the keyboard it sits on.

Opaque legends in normal light

Non-backlit keycaps are read by ambient light, the light already in the room, rather than by LED light shining through the characters. Several terms get confused here. They describe different things:

• Opaque: the keycap is built so that light cannot pass through it.
• Non-shine-through: the legend itself, or any area that could let light through, stays closed to light.
• Blank: the cap has no legend at all, and it can still be fully opaque.
• Non-backlit keyboard: a board with no usable lighting, which says nothing about whether its caps block light.

In practice, the cap's construction is what counts. A keyboard with no backlight tells you nothing about the caps fitted to it.

Results on RGB keyboards

Opaque custom caps can be fitted to RGB keyboards, although their legends stay unlit. The lighting moves elsewhere: it glows around cap edges, between keys, through gaps in the case or plate, and as a reflection on the desk. South-facing RGB lights the board from the typist's side with non-shine-through PBT caps. In contrast, some 1.5 mm Cherry-profile opaque caps can catch slightly on north-facing LEDs.

Custom colours and visual styles

Kromekeycaps' non-backlit PBT designs include brown gradient keycaps (Earth) and blue gradient PBT keycaps (Water), with seamless colour transitions and a matte finish. Alongside them are customisable beige PBT keycaps, Customisable Off White, Green Machine PBT keycaps, Lost In Space PBT keycaps, Void and retro keycaps. Contrasting colourways or accent keys suit a deliberately bold setup instead.

The full range of non-backlit custom keycaps contains 41 products. Colourways run from black and white keycaps to coffee, maroon, grey, green, purple, blue, pink, orange and beige, plus multi-colour designs.

Choosing material and legend method

Once the look is settled, two choices shape how the cap ages: the plastic and the way the legend is applied. They are separate decisions. A spec sheet that names only one leaves the other open.

PBT feel and finish

PBT is a hard plastic with a textured, matte surface that resists oil fairly well. As a result, PBT keycaps hold back the shine that builds up with regular use. ABS is smoother and can take more vibrant colours, but it can turn glossy with heavy use. The right choice depends on the design, so PBT is not automatically the better option.

Wall thickness varies as well. The 1.5 mm figure is common in the trade but is not a universal standard. One PBT formulation that contains glass microspheres measures about 1.3 mm.

Dye-sublimated PBT at Krome

Kromekeycaps makes its custom non-backlit keycaps from high-quality dye-sublimated PBT, in Cherry, OEM and XDA profiles. Dye sublimation uses heat to push dye into the surface layer. The legend therefore becomes part of the cap's surface, with no separate translucent window.

The method handles detailed artwork, several colours and unusual symbols well. It normally needs a dye darker than the base colour, so white legends on black caps are a different job from dark legends on white. The collection of non-backlit dye-sublimated keycaps shows the profiles available.

Double-shot as an alternative

Double-shot moulding joins two plastics, with the second forming the legend inside the cap. The lettering stays crisp and cannot wear off. Double-shot does not automatically mean shine-through either: a double-shot PBT keycap can have an opaque legend layer.

The Krome non-backlit range is dye-sublimated, so describing it as double-shot would be wrong. When a listing names only the plastic, look for a separate statement of how the legend is made.

Fitting 60% to 100% keyboards

Choosing material and legends settles how a set looks. Fit is a separate question, and it depends on the stem, the layout and the exact width of each key.

Check stem and layout first

The Cherry MX-style cross stem is the standard mount for MX-style switches. A matching stem is still not enough for a complete set to fit. UK ISO and US ANSI differ physically. UK ISO has a tall inverted-L Enter, a shorter left Shift, an extra key beside Z, Alt Gr and UK symbol placement. ANSI has a horizontal Enter and a longer left Shift.

• Stem and layout: confirm the MX-style stem, then whether the board is UK ISO or ANSI.
• Widths: match every key width and the spacebar against your board.
• Clearance and rows: check stabiliser clearance and that each profile row suits its position.

Work through these stages in order. A set can pass the stem check and still fail on the last stage.

Match units and keyboard size

Key width is measured in units (u). An alphanumeric key is 1u, common modifiers are 1.25u and a standard ANSI Enter is 2.25u. One unit usually spans 19.05 mm.

Size labels are classifications, not engineering standards. Typical key counts still help as a first filter:

Full size has no single definition either: 104-key ANSI, 105-key ISO and 109-key JIS boards all exist. For full set keycaps, choose from the key-by-key coverage rather than the label.

Choose the complete kit

The spacebar has to match both its width and its stabiliser positions. Common widths are 6.25u and 7u, and stabilised keys use 2u, 6.25u or 7u spacing.

Many 65% and 75% boards use a 1.75u right Shift with 1u right-hand modifiers. Condensed 96% boards need extra care, because their arrangement can differ from a conventional full-size layout.

Kromekeycaps supplies a custom PBT keycaps set for 60%, 65%, 75%, 80%, 96% and 100% boards, with ANSI and ISO options. The sets support both 6.25u and 7u spacebars, and complete custom keycaps start from £69.99.

Choosing your keycap profile

Once the widths match, the profile decides how each key feels under your fingers. It is a separate property from width, and it affects how blank and individual caps can be used.

Profile differs from key width

A footprint such as 1u, 1.25u or 2u says nothing about shape. The profile sets the key's height and the shape of its top, so choose the profile of your non-backlit keycaps as its own decision.

• Sculpted rows: height and shape change from row to row.
• Uniform profiles: XDA and DSA keep one shape on every row.
• Blank options: blank non-backlit PBT caps come in OEM, DSA and XDA.

Sculpting affects spares. A blank 1u cap from one row may not suit every 1u position on the board.

This matters when you order blank keycaps or individual keycaps: match the row as well as the width.

Feel on standard-height switches

Cherry is a classic lower-profile shape, widely used for fast, comfortable typing. OEM, Cherry and XDA are the profiles most often compared, and each differs in height and shape. Choose to suit your keyboard, not from the colourway.

Two retro-leaning shapes also exist. OSA pairs OEM-like height with a rounded, spherical top, while KSA is a sculpted high profile with a deep tactile dish and a pronounced vintage look.

Low-profile switch exceptions

Normal Cherry MX and MX Low Profile are physically different switch families. MX Low Profile travel is 3.2 mm. Normal MX Red travel is 4.0 mm.

LSA is an ultra-slim spherical angled profile made for low-profile boards. On standard switches it may fit the stem yet feel odd or catch neighbouring keys. PFF was designed for MX low-profile switches and uses an MX-style stem, so check low-profile compatibility separately.

Frequently Asked Questions