Ducky Cushion 98 review: silent and stylish without compromise
Table of Contents
When it comes to finding a top-tier mechanical keyboard, Ducky is definitely one of the big-name brands in the space, recognized for creating some impressive boards. Having reviewed its OK-M-98, which offered some rather impressive performance and design, this time I get hands-on with the Cushion 98.
A keyboard designed for both gaming and office work, it’s a two-in-one that combines the performance and style of mechanical switches while keeping the noise down with its quiet design. Ducky uses its own Shush Silent linear and tactile switches to dampen the sound of the Cushion 98. So, I put it to the test to see how it holds up.
- Form factor: 96% Compact
- Key switches: Ducky Shush Silent Linear/Tactile
- Key caps: PBT Doubleshot Keycaps, Cherry Profile
- Connectivity: Tri-mode (USB-C, 2.4 GHz, and BT)
- Dimensions (LxWxH): 386.16 x 147.07 x 41.74 mm
- Weight: 1216 g ± 15 g
The Ducky Cushion 98 provides excellent build quality and design, offering a subtle office-style look with a sturdy, premium-feeling build while still delivering the performance of a mechanical gaming keyboard. Its silent switches and internal dampening also keep things quiet, making it a great option for those who want a more peaceful typing experience. It doesn’t come cheap, though, with its premium finish reflected in the price. There is also a bit of a learning curve at first, but once you get used to it, the Cushion 98 delivers great performance and a high-quality finish.
- Very quiet
- Great build quality and solid design
- Easy tool-free access to the whole board
- Plenty of customizability
- No compromise size
- Hot-swappable switches
- Plenty of extras included
- Good range of connectivity
- No Print Screen button
- No dedicated media controls
- Doesn’t easily provide view of secondary layer functions
- Status lights hard to easily see
- Updates and customization can be unintuitive
Design and features
Although it might be a bit more professionally focused, it still has light and colorful packaging on the outside. With the Cushion 98 sleeve wrapped around the box, it uses light blue and yellow, adding some nice color compared to plenty of other peripherals and hardware that simply go for black and boring.
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Prices correct as of October 6th, 2026.
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel box bottom, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel box back, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel box front, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver box back, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver box top, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver box front, Image by PC Guide
Opening up the box, the keyboard is sleeved in a stylish black cloth, which contrasts nicely with the outer packaging. Extra foam and instructions are laid out on top, while all the accessories are found at the back in a cardboard sleeve. That includes the rather fancy Smart 2-in-1 Puller, Duck Ducko Brush, dongle, white braided USB-C cable, a few spare switches, and a couple of leaflets. There is no manual included, although I had to look one up online anyway.
Ducky Cushion 98 sleeveless box front, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 keyboard in box, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 open box, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 alternate nest mount, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 box contents, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 accessories, Image by PC Guide
Taking the keyboard out of the cloth, the immediate thing I notice is the heft of it. Weighing around 1.21 kg, the aluminum plate and internal padding really add some weight and certainly make it feel premium. The metal top helps with that too, as the cold metal immediately gives the keyboard a solid feel in my hands.
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel weight, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver weight, Image by PC Guide
The Ducky Cushion 98 comes in two colorways: silver and nickel. The former has more of a retro look, with white and gray keycaps that resemble some of Ducky’s original designs. The nickel is more subdued, while still showing off the blue highlights on some of the keys.
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver with box, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver & Nickel with boxes, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel with box, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel top down, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver top down, Image by PC Guide
Looking over the rest of the keyboard, the metal frame wraps around the entire edge of the board. The front doesn’t come up too high and doesn’t cover any of the keycaps or switches, while the sides steadily ramp up towards the back, keeping a slick and clean metal finish.
As for the back, it has just a couple of extras. One side has the Ducky branding and model name, while the other has the switch for changing the connection mode and the USB-C port. The toggle is easily accessible and protrudes enough to find and switch between, while still looking rather elegant and simple.
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel bottom edge, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel left side, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel right side, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel top edge, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel top logo, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel switch and port, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver bottom edge, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver left side, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver top edge, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver top logo, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver switch and port, Image by PC Guide
On the underside, the design is also clean and basic, apart from the rather prominent corner and center stickers. It also has various rubber foot strips around the corners and middle edge, giving it some grip and height. In the corners, you can find the usual set of feet for adjusting the height and typing angle, with two additional heights providing angles of 7°, 9°, and 11°. You can also find the USB receiver nicely tucked away at the top in a small magnetic pocket.
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel underside, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel USB receiver and dock, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel foot, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver underside, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver underside sticker, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver underside corner sticker, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 flat foot, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 foot first step, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 foot second step, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver USB receiver and dock, Image by PC Guide
Beneath the PBT double-shot keycaps, it has Ducky Shush Silent switches, with options for red linears and green tactiles, which is what both of mine came with. They are also hot-swappable, using a standard pinout to allow you to change the switches. Conveniently, Ducky includes a more advanced removal tool that clamps onto the switches and can be released with a switch on the end.
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel caps and switches, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel empty switches, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Nickel switches lit up, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 switch puller, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver switches, Image by PC Guide
The Ducky Cushion 98 takes that customization a step further with the ability to dismantle the keyboard. Held together with just a few magnets and latches, it can be carefully pried apart, avoiding the cables, to access the board. This then allows you to change the nest-mount rubber at the bottom between gray and black, giving you a harder or softer typing feel.
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver frame off, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver frame off bottom magnets, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver frame off top edge, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver frame off top IO, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 Silver frame, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 PCB and mount, Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 PCB, mount, and battery, Image by PC Guide
Pricing
For the price, the Ducky Cushion 98 does come in a bit more expensive than some full-size boards. Even though its compact size and higher-quality build make it a more tempting option, especially if you’re looking for something multi-purpose and easy to repair. It can be found for $159.99/£149.99 in either color scheme or switch configuration.
Ducky Cushion 98 setup (1), Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 setup (2), Image by PC Guide
Performance
Having used the OK-M-98 since reviewing it, I’ve gotten accustomed to the fewer keys found on that board, although it annoyingly lacks the Home key. So, moving over to the Cushion 98, I got to enjoy that key once again, along with the other keys it brings. The Print Screen key does disappear from this one, though.
It doesn’t even move to the function layer like some of the other functions. Instead, it’s simply removed for some reason. I even had to look up the instruction manual online to see what some of the secondary keys do, and I’m still getting to know how to control a lot of it. It could do with printing the functions on the side of the keycaps, rather than making you refer to an online manual.
Ducky Cushion 98 setup (3), Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 setup (4), Image by PC Guide
Running the keyboard day-to-day, I quickly got used to it and found that it is, in fact, very silent. This makes it subtle and easy to use almost anywhere. It doesn’t produce much in the way of rebound noise either, with the rubber and metal plate combining to offer a very quiet and damped sound.
I really appreciated the full range of keys. Even with the lack of a couple, having the numpad for numbers and alt characters, along with the navigation and Home keys, meant I could get through my tasks without having to faff around. I did find that standing the keyboard up on its feet on a mousepad could cause it to fall back down and fold up if I made adjustments without lifting it. So, it might be best not to touch it once it’s raised, or simply enjoy it without having the feet extended.
Ducky Cushion 98 in use (2), Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 in use (1), Image by PC Guide
Initially, I found that using the receiver and 2.4GHz connection, which I prefer for the speed and freedom from cables, the keyboard would occasionally bug out or get stuck. On one occasion, the Ctrl key and Delete key stuck, resulting in it deleting some of my work. Because of that, I checked out the online software to see if there were any updates or solutions.
That process was rather simple. It detected the dongle and asked to perform an automatic update. Unfortunately, after that, it wouldn’t reconnect to the keyboard, so I had to find the instructions again to work out how to reconnect the two. After that, though, the problem seemed to subside, and I got to explore the software too, which offers plenty of customization. Whether changing colors, setting macros, or rebinding keys, it was worth the trouble to get everything customized.
Ducky Cushion 98 software (1), Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 software (2), Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 software (3), Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 software (4), Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 software (5), Image by PC Guide
One of the annoyances I had with the lighting and compact size is the lack of dedicated status lights for Caps Lock, Scroll Lock, and Num Lock. Instead, after a few minutes, I realized they light up underneath their respective keys. Depending on the room lighting and the keyboard’s lighting effect, though, it’s very hard to see those indicators.
Otherwise, when using the keyboard for gaming, it is very responsive too. The dongle makes for quick inputs and feels fast to use regardless of the scenario. Also, despite being full-size, its compact design doesn’t take up as much space as a typical full-size keyboard without compromising too much on its feature set.
Ducky Cushion 98 in use (3), Image by PC Guide
Ducky Cushion 98 in use (4), Image by PC Guide
- Form factor: 96% Compact
- Key switches: Ducky Shush Silent Linear/Tactile
- Key caps: PBT Doubleshot Keycaps, Cherry Profile
- Connectivity: Tri-mode (USB-C, 2.4 GHz, and BT)
- Dimensions (LxWxH): 386.16 x 147.07 x 41.74 mm
- Weight: 1216 g ± 15 g
Conclusion
Overall, I really enjoyed using the Ducky Cushion 98. It offers a great and responsive typing experience, along with a rather chic look that helps it bridge the gap between gaming and office use. The Shush Silent switches also do a great job of reducing the noise, giving you the feel of a mechanical keyboard without the usual loudness.
There are some drawbacks, particularly its price and a few small setbacks in its performance and design, such as the lack of clear status indicators and some initial issues with the wireless connection. However, once set up, the Cushion 98 delivers a strong combination of performance, customization, and quiet operation, making it a compelling option if you want one keyboard that can handle both gaming and everyday work.
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