Keyboard lighting is a useful feature on many laptops, especially if you work at night, study in low light, or type in dark rooms. A backlit keyboard makes the keys easier to see and gives a premium look to your laptop. Many laptops allow you to turn keyboard lighting on or off easily using shortcut keys, system settings, or brand-specific software. However, some users get confused when the backlight doesn’t work, the brightness can’t be changed, or there is no lighting option at all.
In this guide, you will learn how to turn keyboard lighting on or off on a laptop, how to adjust brightness levels, and what to do if your keyboard backlight is not working.
What Is Keyboard Backlight and Why It Matters
A keyboard backlight is a light under the keys that helps you see the letters and symbols clearly. Some keyboards have simple white lighting, while gaming laptops often offer RGB lighting with multiple colors and effects. Backlit keyboards are helpful in low light and also improve typing accuracy because you don’t have to guess key positions.
Some laptops automatically adjust keyboard lighting depending on room light, while others require manual control. The backlight feature depends on your laptop model, so the methods can be slightly different across brands.
Method 1: Use the Keyboard Backlight Shortcut Key (Fastest Method)
Most laptops allow you to control keyboard lighting directly from the keyboard. Usually, the keyboard backlight key is located in the top function row (F1 to F12) and has a small icon that looks like a glowing keyboard, light rays, or a bulb.
In many laptops, pressing this key toggles the backlight on or off. Some laptops also allow you to change brightness levels using the same key.
Common key combinations include:
- Press the keyboard backlight key once to turn it on
- Press again to increase brightness
- Press again to lower brightness or turn it off
Many laptops require the Fn key with the backlight key.
Common shortcut examples:
- Fn + Spacebar (common on Lenovo and many others)
- Fn + F5 (common on Acer and some ASUS models)
- Fn + F10 (common on HP)
- Fn + F3 or Fn + F4 (common on Dell and MSI)
The exact shortcut depends on your laptop keyboard layout, so look for the backlight symbol on one of the function keys.
Method 2: Check If Fn Lock Is Enabled
Sometimes the keyboard backlight key does not work because the function keys are locked in function mode. This means you must press Fn along with the key. If you want the backlight key to work without holding Fn, you can enable or disable Fn Lock depending on your preference.
On many laptops, Fn Lock can be changed by pressing Fn + Esc. Once it changes, try the backlight key again.
Steps:
- Press Fn + Esc
- Try pressing the keyboard backlight key
- Check if the lighting turns on or off
If Fn Lock doesn’t work with Fn + Esc, your laptop may have a different combination, but Fn + Esc is the most common.
Method 3: Turn On Keyboard Lighting Using Windows Settings (If Available)
Windows 11 does not have a universal keyboard backlight control for all laptops, but some laptop models allow keyboard lighting control through Windows settings, especially if they support modern hardware integration.
You can check whether your laptop has keyboard lighting options in Settings.
Steps:
- Press Windows + I
- Go to Personalization
- Click Dynamic Lighting (only available on supported laptops)
- Turn lighting on or off if your keyboard appears there
If you don’t see Dynamic Lighting, it doesn’t mean your keyboard has no backlight. It just means Windows does not control it directly on your device.
Method 4: Use Laptop Brand Software to Control Keyboard Backlight
Many laptop brands include their own software or utilities to control keyboard lighting. If the backlight shortcuts are not working, the brand tool might be missing or not updated.
Here are examples of brand utilities:
Lenovo laptops may use Lenovo Vantage for keyboard lighting settings and backlight timeout control.
Dell laptops often use Dell Peripheral Manager or Dell Command apps depending on the model.
HP laptops may use HP System Event Utility or HP Command Center.
ASUS laptops may use Armoury Crate or MyASUS for lighting controls.
Acer laptops may use Acer Quick Access or PredatorSense on gaming models.
MSI laptops may use MSI Center or SteelSeries Engine for RGB keyboard control.
If your keyboard has RGB lighting, these tools also allow you to change colors, effects, and brightness.
Method 5: Control Keyboard Lighting Through BIOS or UEFI Settings
On some laptops, keyboard backlight settings can be managed through BIOS or UEFI. This is more common for business laptops and some gaming laptops.
To access BIOS, you usually press a key like F2, Del, or Esc while the laptop is starting up. The BIOS menu may contain an option related to keyboard backlight, illumination, or backlight timeout.
Once you find the option, you can enable or disable the keyboard light.
This method is useful when keyboard lighting is disabled at firmware level and doesn’t respond in Windows.
Method 6: Adjust Keyboard Backlight Brightness Levels
Many laptops offer more than one brightness level for the keyboard lighting. Usually, you can cycle through them using the backlight shortcut key. Some devices offer 2 levels (low and high) while others offer 3 levels (low, medium, high) and then off.
If your laptop has RGB lighting, brightness can usually be adjusted from the brand software, and you can also control effects like breathing, wave, static color, or reactive lighting.
If you want to save battery life, you can keep the backlight at the lowest brightness or turn it off when not needed.
Method 7: Set Keyboard Backlight Timeout to Save Battery
Some laptops turn off keyboard lighting automatically after a few seconds of inactivity. This is called backlight timeout. It helps save battery, especially on laptops.
If you want to change or disable timeout settings, check your laptop brand utility or BIOS settings. Some settings allow you to choose how long the backlight stays on when you stop typing, such as 10 seconds, 30 seconds, or always on.
This feature is helpful if your keyboard light keeps turning off automatically and you want it to stay on longer.
What to Do If Keyboard Backlight Is Not Working
If your laptop keyboard lighting is not turning on, there can be several reasons. Some issues are simple, while others may depend on hardware support.
First, make sure your laptop actually has a backlit keyboard. Not all laptop keyboards include lighting, even if the design looks premium. Many laptops have different variants, and only higher models include backlighting.
If your laptop does have a backlit keyboard and it still doesn’t work, try basic fixes. Restarting the laptop sometimes refreshes hotkey services. Also try changing the USB or power settings if you are using an external keyboard, because external keyboards may not support lighting through the same controls.
You should also check if your drivers are updated. Keyboard hotkeys often rely on drivers like chipset drivers, system event utilities, and manufacturer hotkey software. Updating them may fix the problem.
Steps to update drivers through Windows Update:
- Press Windows + I
- Go to Windows Update
- Click Advanced options
- Click Optional updates
- Install any available keyboard, hotkey, or system driver updates
- Restart your laptop
If the backlight still doesn’t work, open Device Manager and check keyboard drivers.
Steps:
- Press Windows + X
- Open Device Manager
- Expand Keyboards
- Right-click your keyboard
- Select Update driver
If nothing works, reinstalling laptop brand software can help, because these tools manage hotkeys and lighting.
Can You Turn Keyboard Backlight On Without a Backlight Key?
Some laptops do not have a dedicated backlight shortcut key, but still support lighting. In such cases, the best method is to use brand software like Lenovo Vantage, Armoury Crate, MSI Center, or HP utilities. You can also check BIOS settings for backlight control.
If your laptop truly does not support backlighting, then it cannot be turned on through software. In that case, an external backlit keyboard is a good option if you need lighting.
Final Thoughts
Turning keyboard lighting on or off on a laptop is usually simple and quick. In most cases, you can use the keyboard shortcut key with or without Fn to toggle the backlight. If that doesn’t work, checking Fn Lock, installing laptop brand utilities, updating drivers, or enabling the feature in BIOS can solve the issue. Keyboard backlighting is a great feature for typing in the dark and improving comfort, and once you learn the right shortcut for your laptop, it becomes very easy to control anytime.
