Ratatype – Review of Features, Pros, Cons
Ratatype offers free lessons to practice your keyboarding skills

These days, most of us type far more often than we write. Thus, it is only in our best interest that we type efficiently and accurately to get more done. The best way to achieve this goal is to use a recognized typing program, such as RataType.
There are quite a number of them, but Ratatype Online is not only free and comes with a modern-looking interface, but it also works. We have tried it out and tested the features. Read our Ratatype review below to see if it will suit you.
Ratatype – Overview Concept
Ratatype Online is a free resource to learn to type effectively and is unique in several ways. It effectively uses proven techniques to teach you how to touch type and how to maintain the correct posture.
What perhaps sets Ratatype apart from all the others is that it uses the concept of groups. Students are all part of specific groups that can interact with each other.
Lessons are bite-size and include many practice sessions. You can test your typing speed at any time and compare your results against those of others.
Ratatype – Features and Highlights

Ratatype is free
It really is! There are no strings attached and no in-app purchases. (So many free educational programs are nothing but samples that require you to pay at some point to continue the training or to get access to advanced features.) You DO need to register, however. This is accomplished quickly and without fuss, and you will not be asked to provide potentially sensitive private information.
Excellent design
It is clear that Ratatype has been designed by a team that understands modern curriculum design principles. The lessons are logical, and they seamlessly flow from one lesson to the next. The exercises and typing tests are sensible, testing only those skills that you should have mastered at that stage. Immediate feedback allows you to identify areas that may need more practice.
Friendly, intuitive interface
Ratatype does not employ advanced graphics, video, or animations in its lessons, but the layout is clear and easily understandable. You will never get lost. There are fifteen lessons, and you can repeat any lesson as many times as you wish. The same is true for the exercises, and you can even take the same typing test several times to improve on your previous score.
Ratatype Versions
Ratatype is most certainly suitable for use by almost anybody, but it does not offer separate versions for schools, individuals, or businesses. It is also only available online, which means that you need reliable access to the internet to use it. Because it is online and all your records are stored in the cloud, you can use Ratatype anywhere and on any device. Surely a big plus for most users.
The Groups concept
Ratatype allows you as an individual, as a teacher, or as an HR manager to create groups that learn to type together. This is how it works:
a. Quick and easy – It cannot be easier: you create the group, get a unique URL, send that URL to your friends, students, or co-workers and ask them to join. That is it! You can now start to learn together. Note: you do not HAVE to be a member of a group to use Ratatype. You are perfectly entitled to use it on your own.
b. Interactive – This concept is significant because all members of a specific group can communicate with each other, thus providing mutual support and encouragement. It goes a long way toward helping students to avoid the isolation that they so often experience with online learning.
c. Benefits for schools – This concept is of particular importance to schools that cannot afford premium programs that require each student to be registered at a fee. Ratatype may not have all the bells and whistles offered by to-be paid-for tutors, but it is remarkably efficient in teaching you to touch type, and this is really all that matters.
d. Limitless. – There is no limit to the number of groups you can create. This means that different teachers at a specific school can create and manage a group, and it is even possible for a single teacher to create many separate groups. In businesses, different groups can be created for employees at different levels of skill.
e. Management – The creator of a group has access to all the records of the members of that group. They can monitor progress and view statistics on test results. Group managers can also communicate with individual students or the group as a whole.
Self-paced
No pressure here. Each student progresses at its own pace and only proceeds when it is comfortable that it has achieved the goals of the previous lesson. Students can learn and practice at any time and where ever he wants to. This does not mean that teachers, for example, cannot set goals for their classes in Ratatype. They can certainly require members of the group to progress to a certain point within a specified time limit.
Comprehensive statistics
Each student has a separate record where statistics regarding progress, test results, and log-in activities are kept. These statistics are available to each student privately, but group managers have access to the records of every member of the group. Students can also share their statistics with others through Facebook, however. Records are kept in the cloud, and Ratatype can be accessed from anywhere.
Support
Ratatype offers an email address through which you can ask any question or report a problem. They generally respond within 24 hours, often much quicker. If you are not a group member, you can still interact with other students on Facebook. This is where you can share results, pose questions or ask for advice.
Typing Tests

The typing test section is an important component of Ratatype. It allows you to test your proficiency level at any time and identify those areas that need more practice. It works like this:
a. Short and sweet – Each test lasts only two to three minutes.
b. Uncomplicated – Tests consist of ordinary text with no complicated words or technical terminology included.
c. No limits – You can take a test in Ratatype whenever you want and even use them as practice sessions.
d. Results recorded – You will get immediate feedback after each test, and your best score will be recorded. If you take a test and fail to improve on your previous score, it will not be recorded. Your feedback will tell you both your typing pace and your accuracy percentage.
e. Methodology – The text that you have to type is displayed on the screen and you have to copy it correctly. If you make an error, you have to correct it before Ratatype lets you continue to the next word.
f. Rewards. – When you achieve certain goals, you will be rewarded with a certificate that can be used as part of your CV. You need to type 40 words per minute for a silver certificate with an accuracy level of at least 96%. A speed of 50 words per minute and an accuracy of 97.8% will earn you a gold certificate, and if you can achieve 70 words per minute with a 99.5% accuracy, you will get a platinum certificate. You can earn as many certificates as you wish in Ratatype.
High Scores
There is no pressure on you to progress at a certain pace or achieve specific goals within certain time limits, but you may wonder how you are doing compared to other students. The High Scores section allows you to do just that.
Here, you can see exactly what the top scores were today, during the past month, overall, or just in your own group. If you are competitive, you may strive toward featuring on this list. Teachers may use this feature to organize competitions and rewards, thereby motivating their learners to try harder.
Ratatype – Pros & Cons
Pro: It is free and it works very well.
Pro: The concept of Groups makes Ratatype one of the most versatile free typing tutors suitable for almost any environment and target group.
Pro: Extraordinarily easy to use.
Con: The simplified practice texts and the very basic language contained in the tests are not suitable for those working in an environment where the more complicated language is used. The very short duration of tests is also a drawback: it hardly tests the student’s ability to type faster and more accurately over a prolonged period.
Alternatives – If you look for free alternatives to Ratatype you may want to consider Typing Master, All the Right Type, 10 Fast Fingers or Typing Cat. Those had also been proven to be updated consistently over the last few years.
Ratatype Review – The Verdict

Ratatype has received consistently favorable reviews from professionals in the educational field and users alike. There are more sophisticated typing tutors available, but they cost money.
However, it would be wrong to think that Ratatype is used only by those unable to buy other software packages. It is a highly efficient training program that has helped many thousands of people to learn how to type faster and more accurately.
Final verdict: recommended.
Have you used Ratatype? What is your experience? Please share your insights in the comments below.
Reading tip: Guide to the best keyboard switches.
I have found the course to be extremely useful in learning touch typing. I highly recommend anyone needing to learn to touch type use this course.
What do you think about the number positioning? it differs from the most other. I’m on a cross road thinking which way is better to learn
it is so nice to type in ratatype
It always has texts in the tests that use bad grammar almost as if to make you have typos and when you make a typo they count is like you didn’t type anything in that time which is really weird and confusing.