Kruti Dev vs Mangal (Inscript & Remington): Key Differences & Which Font for Govt Exams?
If you are preparing for government competitive examinations in India—such as SSC CGL, SSC CHSL, MP CPCT, Allahabad High Court, Rajasthan High Court, or State Police recruitment—the biggest dilemma every Hindi typist faces is: Should I learn Kruti Dev or Mangal Font?
What is Kruti Dev Font? (The Legacy Standard)
Kruti Dev (most commonly Kruti Dev 010) is a legacy, non-Unicode TrueType font developed for Hindi typing on Windows machines. It uses an ASCII character mapping with the traditional Remington typewriter layout.
- How it works: When you type on a keyboard with Kruti Dev selected, the system is technically registering English ASCII codes, but displaying Hindi glyphs.
- Pros: Huge historical adoption in state courts (Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh) and private printing presses.
- Cons: Not web-friendly. If you copy Kruti Dev text and paste it into Google, WhatsApp, or an email, it appears as unreadable gibberish (e.g., d`fr nso).
What is Mangal Font? (The Unicode Standard)
Mangal is the official Unicode Devanagari font created by Microsoft for Windows. Unlike Kruti Dev, Mangal encodes every character according to global Unicode standards (U+0900 to U+097F).
- How it works: Text typed in Mangal font is recognized by every modern device, web browser, mobile phone, and search engine.
- Official Mandate: The Government of India and central exam bodies (such as SSC and UPSC) have officially standardized on Unicode Devanagari fonts (Mangal).
The Two Layouts of Mangal: Inscript vs Remington
A common misconception among students is thinking Mangal is a keyboard layout. Mangal is a font, not a layout. You can type Mangal font using two completely different keyboard layouts:
1. Mangal Inscript Layout (Govt Standard)
The Inscript (Indian Script) layout is standardized by the Department of Electronics (Govt of India). It organizes vowels on the left side of the keyboard and consonants on the right side. It is standardized across all Indian languages (Hindi, Marathi, Punjabi, Bengali, Gujarati).
2. Mangal Remington (Gail / CBI) Layout
Many senior typists and court clerks who originally learned on Kruti Dev typewriter keyboards found Inscript difficult to learn from scratch. To bridge this gap, Microsoft and Hindi Indic Input tools introduced Remington Gail and Remington CBI layouts. These allow you to type with the familiar Kruti Dev typewriter finger habits, while automatically outputting modern Unicode Mangal characters!
Detailed Comparison Table
| Feature | Kruti Dev 010 | Mangal (Inscript) | Mangal (Remington Gail) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Encoding | Non-Unicode (ASCII) | Unicode Standard | Unicode Standard |
| Keyboard Layout | Remington Typewriter | Official Inscript | Remington (Typewriter style) |
| Web & Mobile Compatible | No (Requires Font installed) | Yes (Universally readable) | Yes (Universally readable) |
| SSC CHSL / CGL | Optional / Rare | Supported & Recommended | Supported (Remington Gail) |
| MP CPCT / State Exams | Allowed in some tests | Yes | Yes (Remington Gail) |
| Allahabad High Court | Mandatory in older exams | Accepted | Widely used |
Which Font Should You Choose?
- If preparing for Central Govt (SSC CGL, CHSL, RRB NTPC): Learn Mangal Inscript or Mangal Remington Gail. Both are fully supported in the examination software.
- If preparing for UP/MP/Rajasthan Court Clerk or Stenographer: Check the specific notification. Many court recruitment boards still test in Kruti Dev 010 or allow Remington Gail.
- If you are a complete beginner: Start with Mangal Inscript. It is logically structured and lets you transition easily into Marathi, Punjabi, or other Indic languages.
Practice Both on SkillUpTyping for Free
SkillUpTyping provides dedicated online simulators for all major Hindi typing formats with real-time backspace and WPM tracking:
- Practice Hindi Typing Test (Kruti Dev)
- Practice Hindi Typing Test (Mangal Inscript)
- Practice Hindi Typing Test (Mangal Remington)
- Step-by-step lessons on our Hindi Typing Tutor
