What is your experience with keyboard covers and palm pads on MacBooks?

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Level 1

81 points

What is your experience with keyboard covers and palm pads on MacBooks?

I have read mixed opinions on keyboard covers and palm pads that range from they are okay to comments that they will surely damage your MacBook's screen if not removed before closing the lid.

My keyboard pad has been on my MacBook for 3 years, never removed, along with my DIY palm pads. They both leave smudged images on the screen that I clean off periodically, but there is no apparent damage to the screen.

What is your experience? Has a keyboard cover or palm pad harmed your MacBook screen?

I'm not looking for opinions, only factual experience with keyboard covers and palm pads.

MacBook Air, macOS 15.5

Posted on Jul 24, 2025 05:37 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

Allan Jones

Level 9

76,466 points

Jul 24, 2025 11:14 AM in response to ejbpesca

This Apple article seems pretty definitive:

Keep your Mac laptop within acceptable operating temperatures - Apple Support

especially this part:

and this one:

Using a camera cover, palm rest, or keyboard cover on a Mac notebook - Apple Support

Later Macbook Airs have no fans—they are convection-cooled. The logical place for hot air to escape in the fanless system is the keyboard.

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Answer 2

LuxStar

Level 2

312 points

Jul 24, 2025 06:02 AM in response to ejbpesca

Hi.

Keyboard covers and palm pads often cause smudges or marks on the screen from oils and dirt transferring when the lid is closed. Over time these oils can wear down or remove the screens anti-reflective coating, which might affect display quality permanently.

I personally use a keyboard cover but always remove it before closing the lid, since the extra layer can create pressure points on the screen, something I’m not willing to risk.

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Answer 3

ejbpesca Author

Level 1

81 points

Jul 25, 2025 05:31 AM in response to Allan Jones

Thanks for the reply. I must use a keyboard cover and at least one thin strip of palm pad, which has not affected the function of my heavily used M2 MacBook over 3 years, so I wonder if there is any documented case of these add-ons harming a MacBook.

Apple claims the MacBook can be operated in up to 95F. The keyboard area of my MacBook never goes beyond 77F, so no overheating problems.

The screen has imprint smudges from the keyboard cover, but has no anti-glare loss.

The lid has never been evenly closed for 3 years due to two palm pads 1.5 mm thick, and currently, a 1.5 mm thick strip on the right side with no cushion to the left of the touchpad. Possibly, the storage position has prevented damage to the hinge since the machine lies on its hinge side for storage, with no gravitational pressure between the lid and base.

I appreciate Apple's precautionary instructions, but I wonder if there are any documented examples of damage to a MacBook due to the use of a keyboard cover or palm pads.

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Answer 4

Jul 25, 2025 07:04 AM in response to ejbpesca

Why the concern and need to use key board covers which, as pointed out above by Allan Jones, are not recommended for two very valid reasons, heat and display interference? There are thousands/millions of documented instances of display/computer interference and damage due to keyboard covers. We users do not have access to this data but from experience, keyboard covers do damage the display due to the small clearance between the display and the keyboard. So there you go, you have one documented case.

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Answer 5

Allan Jones

Level 9

76,466 points

Jul 25, 2025 11:32 AM in response to ejbpesca

Hello again. To address two points you make:

Apple claims the MacBook can be operated in up to 95F. The keyboard area of my MacBook never goes beyond 77F, so no overheating problems.

— That is ambient temperature, the temp of the room or area where the computer is used. Temps inside the computer are higher. My 2017 iMac 5K i7 waking from sleep in a 75F room is over 100F at the CPU inside the case. Resource intense activities like gaming or watching videos can put my iMac's temps over 150F. That iMac model has a honkin' big cooling fan and lots of airspace around the internal parts. A M-series Macbook Air does not.

The screen has imprint smudges from the keyboard cover, but has no anti-glare loss.

— If the smudges will not clean off, then there is some loss of coating

Your usage patterns suggest that screen marking is not a big issue but, IMHO, the cooling issue remains. I just checked a takedown site and, sure enough, it show yours is convection, not fan cooled. That worries me.

We are not picking on you. We only want you to have what you need for an informed decision.

Cheers!

Allan

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