AZERTY-FR vs AZERTY-BE — French vs Belgian Keyboards

AZERTY-FR (France) and AZERTY-BE (Belgium) are the two main AZERTY layouts. They're very similar — both have the A/Q and W/Z swaps, both use top-row letters/accents by default, both require Shift for numbers. The differences are in symbol positions. This guide covers them all.

Quick comparison

Feature	AZERTY-FR	AZERTY-BE
A/Q swap	✓	✓
W/Z swap	✓	✓
M position	Right of L (home)	Right of L (home)
Top row default	Letters/accents	Letters/accents
Number row	Requires Shift	Requires Shift
@	AltGr+0	AltGr+0
€	AltGr+E	AltGr+E
French accents (é, à, è, ù)	Direct keys	Direct keys
ç	Direct key	Direct key
Some symbol positions	Standard FR	Slightly different

The differences are subtle — about 5% of keys differ in symbol positions.

When to use AZERTY-FR

• You live in France
• You write French regularly
• You learned AZERTY in France
• Your keyboard hardware is French

See AZERTY-FR layout deep-dive.

When to use AZERTY-BE

• You live in Wallonia (French-speaking Belgium)
• You're in Brussels and work with French
• Your workplace standardized on Belgian
• Your keyboard hardware is Belgian

See AZERTY-BE Belgian layout.

Both vs other layouts

If you're outside France/Wallonia:

• French-speaking Switzerland: use QWERTZ-CH (Swiss multilingual)
• French Canada (Québec): use Canadian French (different layout, QWERTY-based)
• French-speaking Africa: typically AZERTY-FR

Key positions identical across AZERTY-FR and AZERTY-BE

• AZERTYUIOP top row
• QSDFGHJKLM home row
• WXCVBN bottom row (with ,;:! etc.)
• French accents é, è, à, ù on direct keys
• Numbers via Shift on top row
• @ on AltGr+0
• € on AltGr+E

This is 95%+ of typing experience. Most users can switch between FR and BE with 1-2 weeks of minor adjustment.

Where they differ

Mostly in symbol positions:

• [, ], {, } positions slightly differ
• Backslash position
• Some Punctuation Shift behaviors
• Dead-key behavior for some accents

For prose typing in French: virtually no difference. For programmer use (heavy symbol use): noticeable but manageable.

Touch typing tips

If you're switching between FR and BE:

1. Letters are identical — muscle memory transfers
2. Numbers via Shift — identical
3. Common French accents — identical
4. Symbols and brackets — minor differences, retrain over 1-2 weeks

Frequently Asked Questions

Should I learn AZERTY-FR if I'm in Belgium?

If you're in Wallonia (French-speaking): AZERTY-BE matches your workplace. AZERTY-FR works for French text but won't match local keyboards.

Is AZERTY-FR or AZERTY-BE more common?

AZERTY-FR — France has ~67M French speakers; Wallonia has ~4M. AZERTY-FR is also more common in French-speaking Africa.

What about French Canada?

Quebec uses Canadian French layout (QWERTY-based with dead-key accents). Completely different from AZERTY-FR/BE despite sharing the language.

Can I use AZERTY-FR keyboard in Belgium?

Yes — functionally the same for letter typing. Minor symbol differences. Brussels workplaces often see both.

Should programmers use AZERTY?

AZERTY makes programming awkward (symbols require AltGr, brackets in odd positions). Many French/Belgian programmers use QWERTY-US for code and switch to AZERTY for French text.

What's better — switching between AZERTY-FR and AZERTY-BE, or using one for everything?

Use one for everything if possible. Switching daily creates accumulated friction. Most users pick one based on their primary work location.

Try both

Practice AZERTY-FR and AZERTY-BE on Typing Hero App.

For more: How to type in French, AZERTY-FR deep-dive, AZERTY-BE deep-dive.