The Razer BlackWidow Elite is an outstanding gaming keyboard. This wired-only model feels very well-built and sturdy, and it has acceptable ergonomics, thanks to the two incline settings and detachable wrist rest. The full RGB backlighting is amazing for dark room gaming, and it’s easily customizable within the Razer Synapse 3 software. You can also set macros to any key and create multiple profiles to keep your favorite settings. The tactile Razer Orange switches on our unit have low operating force and short pre-travel, giving you a light and responsive gaming experience. It’s also available with clicky Razer Green and linear Razer Yellow switches to suit your preferences.
Our Verdict
The Razer BlackWidow Elite is an outstanding gaming keyboard thanks to its short pre-travel distance and low operating force. It's also very well-built, and gamers should appreciate its customization options, whether it's controlling the full RGB backlighting or recording macros. It's available in three different switch types so you can choose your preferred gaming experience.
- Feels very well-built and sturdy.
- Full RGB backlighting.
- All keys are macro-programmable.
- Available in three different types of switches.
- Short pre-travel distance.
- Customization software only available on Windows.
The Razer BlackWidow Elite is a great keyboard for the office. It has two incline settings and comes with a detachable wrist rest. The Razer Orange switches on our unit provide a very nice typing experience and are quiet enough for any open-office environment. However, the clicky Razer Green switches may be louder.
- Feels very well-built and sturdy.
- Detachable wrist-rest.
- Excellent typing quality.
- Available in three different types of switches.
- Quiet enough for noise-sensitive environments.
- Customization software only available on Windows.
- Wired-only
The Razer BlackWidow Elite is wired-only and isn't designed for mobile devices.
The Razer BlackWidow Elite is a great keyboard for programmers. It has excellent typing quality, and you can choose between three different types of switches. It's comfortable to type on for long periods, and the board feels very durable, which is great. It's a very versatile keyboard that can be used on multiple OS, and programmers should appreciate the ability to macro-program any key.
- Feels very well-built and sturdy.
- Full RGB backlighting.
- Excellent typing quality.
- All keys are macro-programmable.
- Available in three different types of switches.
- Customization software only available on Windows.
- Wired-only
The Razer BlackWidow Elite is inadequate for use in a home theater PC setup. It's a large, wired-only keyboard with no trackpad, so not only do you need to run a cable from the couch to the computer, you also need a separate mouse. On the plus side, it has dedicated media controls for easy access and backlighting for those who like to watch TV in the dark.
- Feels very well-built and sturdy.
- Available in three different types of switches.
- No trackpad.
- Wired-only
- Feels very well-built and sturdy.
- Available in three different types of switches.
Changelog
- Updated Nov 29, 2023: We've converted this review to Test Bench 1.3.1, which adds a new estimated PCB latency test to the Single-Key Latency section and a new Analog test to the Switches section of this review. You can see the full changelog here.
- Updated Oct 30, 2023: We've converted this review to Test Bench 1.3, which overhauls how key input is evaluated. We've added new tests for Single Key Latency, Multi Key Latency, Data Transmission, and Chord Split. We've also introduced a new Raw Performance usage and adjusted how the Gaming and Office usage scores are calculated. You can see the full changelog here.
- Updated Jun 15, 2023: We've converted this review to Test Bench 1.2. This update introduces new Backlight Features and Backlight Clarity test boxes. We've also added a new Switches test box, added additional test comparisons to our Hardware Customizability test box that we introduced with our last Test Bench. For an in-depth look at our changes, you can see our full changelog here.
- Updated May 26, 2023: We've converted this review to Test Bench 1.1. This update adds several new tests addressing Hardware Customization, Macro Keys And Programming, and Wireless Mobile Compatibility. We've also added new objective evaluations to the Typing Noise test, and we've simplified several tests and removed several others that were no longer relevant. For an in-depth look at all our changes, you can see our full changelog here.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The BlackWidow Elite is available in tactile Razer Orange, clicky Razer Green, and linear Razer Yellow switches. We tested the Razer Orange switches, and we expect our review to be relevant for the other variants, except for the overall typing experience, which should be different with other switches.
Popular Keyboard Comparisons
The Razer BlackWidow Elite is one of the best gaming keyboards we’ve tested. It sets itself apart thanks to its proprietary Razer switches and some of its extra features, like the USB passthrough and the audio jack to connect your headphones. It's also very versatile compared to other gaming keyboards, as it performs very well for programming and office use as well. All in all, this model should satisfy most people. For more options, check out our recommendations for the best gaming keyboards, the best RGB keyboards, and the best mechanical gaming keyboards.
The Razer Huntsman Elite and the Razer BlackWidow Elite are very similar in build, comfort, and extra features. The biggest difference is that the Huntsman Elite is available with Razer Linear Optical switches, and the BlackWidow Elite is available with Razer tactile Orange, clicky Green, and linear Yellow ones.
The Razer BlackWidow Elite is much better than the Razer BlackWidow. The Elite is available in three different switches, so you can get the ones you prefer, it has a wrist rest, it's better-built, it has a USB passthrough, and it has dedicated media keys.
The Razer BlackWidow Elite and the Razer BlackWidow V3 are both outstanding gaming keyboards with fairly similar features. The Elite has a USB passthrough, and the wrist rest is more comfortable. It provides a better typing experience mainly because the V3's keys are not as stable, and its Razer Yellow linear switches are a bit too sensitive due to their short pre-travel distance and low operating force. Also, they don't give any tactile feedback, which the Razer Orange switches on the Elite do. Both keyboards offer a clicky switch option, and the Elite has a third, linear switch option as well.
The Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro and the Razer BlackWidow Elite are very similar keyboards, but the V3 Pro is wireless. The V3 Pro has a multi-device pairing feature that lets you pair up to three devices at the same time so that you can easily switch between them. On the other hand, the wired Elite has a USB passthrough. Both keyboards are available with Razer Yellow linear switches and Green clicky switches, but the Elite is also available with Orange tactile switches.
Test Results
This is a rather large keyboard due to its full-size layout. It's heavy and takes even more space if you use the included magnetic wrist rest. If you'd like a small, TenKeyLess keyboard, consider the Razer BlackWidow Tournament Edition Chroma V2.
The Razer BlackWidow Elite has excellent build quality. The front side of the keyboard is made of metal, while the back and sides are made of plastic. The overall design feels sturdy and doesn't have too much flex. The ABS keycaps don't feel too cheap, though they don't give the same high-end finish as the doubleshot PBT keycaps found on the Razer Huntsman Tournament Edition.
The Razer BlackWidow Elite's ergonomics are acceptable for a straight board. While this isn't designed to be an ergonomic keyboard, it still has two different incline settings on top of coming with a detachable leatherette wrist rest, which is great. However, the wrist rest moves a bit when using it.
The Razer BlackWidow Elite features full RGB backlighting that is bright enough for well-lit environments. It's also very good for darker rooms, and all the keys are easy to read. However, while the media keys are lit up all around, the legends aren't carved out, so you can't read those. If you want a keyboard with flashier lighting, check out the ROCCAT Vulcan 120 AIMO with its low-profile keycaps and transparent switch casings.
The Razer BlackWidow Elite is wired-only. The cable ends in three different plugs. There are two USB plugs: one for the keyboard, and the other needs to be plugged in if you want to use the USB passthrough on the keyboard. The third connection is for a typical 3.5mm audio jack. The keyboard has an audio jack on its side, where you can plug in your headphones if your computer is too far.
The Razer BlackWidow Elite can't be used wirelessly. If you'd like a keyboard with outstanding wireless versatility, consider the Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro.
The Razer BlackWidow Elite has nice extra features. It has dedicated media keys in the top right corner for music control, and there's a knob for volume control. The keyboard also has a USB passthrough to connect other peripherals, and there's an audio jack to connect your headphones. However, our unit's audio jack seems to have issues, as we can hear a lot of static feedback depending on how the cable is positioned. It doesn't have dedicated macro keys, but all of its keys are macro-programmable. If you prefer a keyboard with dedicated macro keys, check out the Corsair K100 RGB.
The Razer BlackWidow Elite provides an excellent typing quality. The spacing of the keys is good, which helps to reduce typos, but the low pre-travel distance could cause more unintentional keystrokes if you're not used to it. The ABS keycaps don't feel too cheap and are nice to type on. Most keys are very stable, and the keyboard uses Costar stabilizers, though the space bar on our unit is a bit wobbly. The Razer Orange switches give great feedback, but if you prefer another type of feel, it's also available with linear Razer Yellow or clicky Razer Green switches.
Our Razer BlackWidow Elite is quiet enough for an office environment, but different switches may result in different typing noise.
Just like the Razer BlackWidow Lite, the Razer BlackWidow Elite we tested has proprietary Razer Orange switches. These are designed to be fairly quiet but still provide nice tactile feedback. They can be compared to Cherry MX Brown switches, with a bump before the actuation point. They have a short pre-travel distance and are easy to actuate, which is great for responsive gaming. It's also available in clicky Razer Green and linear Yellow switches. If you like mechanical switches that feel a bit smoother, like membrane switches, check out the Razer Ornata Chroma with its mecha-membrane switches. You can also check out Razer's optical switches on the Razer Huntsman.
The Razer BlackWidow Elite has incredibly low latency. You shouldn't feel any delay while on the desktop or when gaming.
The Razer Synapse 3 software is fantastic and gives you control over a lot of settings. You can create plenty of profiles and save them on the onboard memory. However, the lighting settings don't seem to stay, but keybindings will. If you want a companion software that's compatible with macOS, see the Corsair K95 RGB PLATINUM XT.
While the keyboard is fully compatible with Windows, the Scroll Lock and Pause Break buttons don't work on macOS. Also, the software isn't available on macOS and Linux, although all keys work as intended on Linux; you just won't be able to customize the keyboard. If you want something fully compatible with macOS, check out the SteelSeries Apex Pro.