The SteelSeries Apex Pro is an outstanding keyboard for gamers, and it's quite versatile, too. It has a unique setting that lets you change the amount of pre-travel distance needed to input a keystroke, which increases and decreases its actuation force. You can lower it for a more responsive experience in games, or you can raise it to reduce the number of typos and accidental keystrokes when typing text. This keyboard is very well-built and comes with a nice magnetic wristrest. It also has an OLED screen you can customize using the configuration software.
Our Verdict
The SteelSeries Apex Pro is an excellent gaming keyboard. It's responsive, and you can set the pre-travel distance of your keys to your preferred setting. It's also very well-built and is fully customizable through its software. The backlighting is also great for gaming in the dark.
- Adjustable pre-travel distance.
- Very well-built design.
- Great typing quality.
- Full RGB backlighting.
- Wrist rest is a dust magnet.
- No dedicated macro keys.
The Apex Pro is decent for an office environment. It has a nice wristrest that offers a comfortable ergonomic design. Typing on this keyboard is satisfying, and it doesn't make too much noise, either.
- Very well-built design.
Quiet.
- Great typing quality.
- Wrist rest is a dust magnet.
- Wired-only.
The SteelSeries Apex Pro isn't designed for use with a mobile device or tablet. It's a wired-only keyboard meant for use with a PC.
The Apex Pro is a good keyboard for programming overall. Typing is satisfying, and you can also set the pre-travel distance of each key, meaning you can find your preferred setting to reduce the number of typos. You can also program every key and customize the keyboard inside its software.
- Very well-built design.
- Great typing quality.
- Full RGB backlighting.
- Wrist rest is a dust magnet.
- Wired-only.
The SteelSeries Apex Pro isn't designed for use with a home theater PC. You can only use it wired, which isn't ideal if you're sitting on your couch. Unfortunately, it also lacks a set of dedicated media controls, although you can playback media using the scroll wheel at the top right corner.
- Very well-built design.
- Great typing quality.
- Full RGB backlighting.
- Wrist rest is a dust magnet.
- Wired-only.
No dedicated media keys.
The SteelSeries Apex Pro has excellent raw performance, making it well-suited for playing games in all genres and at any competitive level. It has remarkably low latency and a 1000Hz polling rate that isn't bottlenecked by other latency elements. It also supports N-key rollover out of the box and can send multiple inputs per USB report.
- Very well-built design.
- Great typing quality.
- Wrist rest is a dust magnet.
Changelog
- Updated Aug 26, 2025: We've converted this review to Test Bench 1.4.1. This update removes the Key Release test and a video element from the Multi-Key Latency section, resulting in minor score changes. See our full 1.4.1 changelog for details.
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Updated May 15, 2025:
We've written text for the new Adjustable Input Granularity box, added with Test Bench 1.4, and we've made sure all text throughout the review reflects any changes.
- Updated May 15, 2025: We've updated this review with our new Test Bench 1.4 methodology. It adds a new Output Type classification in the Switches box, indicating whether the keyboard's output is non-adjustable, adjustable, or analog. It also introduces a new Adjustable Input Granularity test, which improves comparability between keyboards with adjustable input.
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Updated Nov 21, 2024:
We've retested this keyboard and slightly lowered the Build Quality score to reflect the current market. We also now indicate that this keyboard has non-dedicated media keys. For more details, see the Extra Features section.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the SteelSeries Apex Pro Mechanical Gaming Keyboard. A TenKeyLess version, the SteelSeries Apex Pro TKL, is also available, which we expect to perform similarly. This is one of many keyboards in the SteelSeries Apex lineup, which includes the SteelSeries Apex 7 TKL, the SteelSeries Apex 5, and the SteelSeries Apex 3.
Popular Keyboard Comparisons
The SteelSeries Apex Pro is an exceptional gaming keyboard and among the best that we've tested. However, some people may not like its linear switches for general typing due to the lack of tactile feedback. If you want tactile switches, it's better to go with the SteelSeries Apex 7 TKL.
For more options, check out our recommendations for the best gaming keyboards, the best mechanical keyboards, and the best keyboards for writers.
The SteelSeries Apex Pro and the Wooting 60HE are mechanical gaming keyboards with exceptional gaming performance and analog switch functionality that allow you to adjust the pre-travel of individual keys. The SteelSeries is a full-size keyboard and includes a wrist rest. It also has some hardware features the Wooting lacks, including a USB passthrough, a volume wheel, and a small OLED screen. On the other hand, the Wooting 60HE is a smaller, Compact (60%) model. The Wooting has several additional software features the SteelSeries lacks, including a low latency Tachyon Mode, Rapid Triggers, the ability to assign up to four inputs to a single keypress, customizable reset points, and an Analog Mode that mimics the gradual inputs of controller joysticks.
The SteelSeries Apex Pro and SteelSeries Apex 7 TKL are wired, mechanical gaming keyboards with very similar build qualities and many features in common. Their major differences are in size and available switch types. The Apex Pro has OmniPoint linear switches that allow you to adjust the pre-travel distanced needed to input keystrokes to your liking. While the version we tested was the full-sized version, there’s also a TenKeyLess variant available. On the other hand, the Apex 7 TKL we tested is a TenKeyLess design, but a full-sized variant, the SteelSeries Apex 7, is also available. The unit we tested has tactile SteelSeries Brown switches that feel similar to Cherry MX Brown switches, and It’s also available with clicky SteelSeries Blue or linear SteelSeries Red switches.
The SteelSeries Apex Pro and the Logitech G915 LIGHTSPEED are exceptional gaming keyboards. The SteelSeries has a better build quality and more features, including an OLED screen and the ability to customize the pre-travel distance of every switch. Every key is macro-programmable on the SteelSeries, while you can only reprogram the dedicated macro keys on the Logitech. On the other hand, the Logitech is a wireless keyboard, allowing you to connect with any Bluetooth-compatible device, and it's available with low profile tactile, clicky, or linear switches, while the SteelSeries has linear switches only.
The SteelSeries Apex Pro and the Razer Huntsman V3 Pro are wired gaming keyboards that use analog optical switches, allowing you to customize individual switches' pre-travel and reset distance. While both offer similar raw gaming performance, the Razer provides significantly better input granularity and supports analog output, which is useful in games like racing sims where you can benefit from gradual, joystick-like control. Their other differences lie in extra control features: the SteelSeries includes an OLED screen and a programmable scroll wheel, while the Razer offers dedicated media keys and a programmable rotary control knob.
Test Results
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