How to Turn Off Auto-Correct on the iPad

Turning iPad Auto-Correct On/Off

Auto-Correct can be a great feature, but as often as not, it is also a very frustrating feature.  We've all experienced typing an email or text message only to read it through and spot garbled words after Auto-Correct got its hand on them, or worse yet, we catch it after we send the message.  

There are definitely some cool things you can do with Auto-Correct.  For example, one neat keyboard shortcut is to skip typing the apostrophe in contractions like "can't" or "won't" and let Auto-Correct insert it for you.

 But unless you type a lot of contractions, the time saved may not be worth the frustration involved.  

On the flip side, if you have Auto Correct turned off and want to turn it back on, these instructions will work in reverse.  The entire process is actually quite easy.  

1. The first step is to go into your iPad's settings via the icon that looks like gears turning. (Learn how to open the iPad's settings.)
2. Next, choose "General" from the left-side menu. This will fill up the section of the screen to the right with the various options found under general settings.
3. Open the keyboard settings by scrolling down until you see the "Keyboard" option and tapping on it.
4. The Auto-Correction setting is just below Auto-Capitalization. (I've highlighted it in the image above these instructions.) Simply tap the slider to turn it On to Off.

Do You Want Auto Correct Without the Auto Correct?

By default, spell checking is turned on for your iPad.

 You can check this setting on the same screen used to turn Auto-Correct on and off.   It's just below that setting.  When spell checking is turned on, misspelled words -- or what the iPad thinks are misspelled words -- will have a red squiggly line below them.  Simply tap the word and the iPad will offer three suggestions for corrections.

This is basically the same as Auto Correct without the auto and with more choice to make sure you replace it with the right word.   

You can also pay attention to Predictive typing, which is also turned on by default and configured in the same keyboard settings.  Predictive typing suggests words as you type.  If you are typing a long word, keeping one eye on the predictions across the top of the keyboard will allow you to use one tap to complete the word.  

Learn more about the different keyboard settings.