What is the difference between Flikzi and SwiftKey?

SwiftKey is Microsoft's free keyboard, known for its predictions, many languages and optional backup and sync through a Microsoft account. Flikzi is a paid keyboard of hexagon keys where flicks replace shift and delete, and it has no internet permission. Choose SwiftKey for languages and sync; choose Flikzi if you want your typing to stay on one phone, by design.

Is Flikzi a good SwiftKey alternative for privacy?

Flikzi requests no internet permission, so it cannot send what you type anywhere. SwiftKey uses the network for some features. If you rely on you want your dictionary and typing style backed up and synced between devices, SwiftKey may suit you better.

Flikzi vs SwiftKey: an offline SwiftKey alternative

At a glance

	Flikzi	SwiftKey
Price	Paid (price set before launch)	Free
Internet permission	None. No internet permission.	Yes. Used for account features, backup and sync, and online services.
Account	None	Optional Microsoft account
Backup and sync	No. Nothing leaves the phone.	Optional, to your OneDrive
Layout	Honeycomb of hexagon keys, no shift or delete key	QWERTY and many regional layouts
Capitals	Flick a letter up	Shift key
Deleting	Slide a space key left to delete, right to undelete (hold first for words or sentences); swipe a letter to delete a word	Backspace key
Glide typing	No	Yes (Flow)
Languages	English, Simplified Chinese (pinyin)	Hundreds
Foldables and tablets	Split halves with a number pad between them	Split and thumb layouts

SwiftKey details checked on 27 September 2026 from Microsoft’s own pages and the sources below. Flikzi is not yet on Google Play.

Privacy and data

Microsoft says that if you don't sign in, SwiftKey stores your language data on your device and it is never transferred. If you sign in, your personal dictionary and typing model can be backed up and synced through your Microsoft account and OneDrive.

SwiftKey's Google Play data-safety label lists optional collection of device IDs and location for advertising or marketing. A 2022 Trinity College Dublin study also recorded SwiftKey sending usage telemetry tied to the Google Advertising ID. Microsoft's description and the study disagree, and the study may be out of date.

Flikzi has no account and no sync, because it has no internet permission. That is a limit as well as a promise: if you change phones, your Flikzi settings do not follow you.

Typing

SwiftKey is a conventional keyboard: a shift key for capitals, a backspace key for deleting and a long-press or symbols layer for everything else. Flikzi removes those keys and gives each job to a gesture. You flick a letter up for its capital, hold and slide for the symbols printed in its corners, and slide a space key left to delete and right to undelete. Hold the space first to pick the size: the key turns amber for letters, orange for words and red for sentences.

That takes a few minutes to learn. Try every gesture in your browser before you decide.

Choose SwiftKey if

You want your dictionary and typing style backed up and synced between devices.
You type in many languages or use glide typing.
You want a free keyboard.

Choose Flikzi if

You want no account, no sync and no network access at all.
You like gestures instead of extra keys.
You type English, Chinese pinyin, or both.
You use a foldable or tablet and want a number pad between the halves.

Switching from SwiftKey

Install Flikzi from Google Play, turn it on in Settings, and choose it as your keyboard. You can keep SwiftKey installed and switch back from the keyboard switcher.

Your SwiftKey typing model does not carry over.

Flikzi vs SwiftKey