Insert a symbol using the keyboard with ASCII or Unicode character codes
Symbols and special characters are either inserted using ASCII or Unicode codes. You can tell which is which when you look up the code for the character.
Go to Insert >Symbol > More Symbols.
Find the symbol you want.
Tip
The Segoe UI Symbol font has a very large collection of Unicode symbols to choose from.
On the bottom right you'll see Character code and from:. The Character code is what you'll enter to insert this symbol from the keyboard. The from: field tells you if it's a Unicode or an ASCII character.
Before you start:
- If the symbol’s From field says Unicode (hex), use ALT+X.
- If it says Symbol (decimal), use ALT + the numeric keypad.
Inserting Unicode Characters
- Type the character code where you want to insert the Unicode symbol.
- Press ALT+X to convert the code to the symbol.
If you're placing your Unicode character immediately after another character, select just the code before pressing ALT+X.
Tip
If you don't get the character you expected, make sure you have the correct font selected.
Inserting ASCII Characters
Use the numeric keypad with Num Lock on to type the ASCII numbers, not the numbers across the top of your keyboard.
All ASCII character codes are four digits long. If the code for the character you want is shorter than four digits, add zeros to the beginning to get to 4 digits.
- Go to Home tab, in the Font group, change the font to Wingdings (or other font set).
- Press and hold the ALT key and type the character code on the numeric keypad.
- Change the font back to your previous font after inserting the symbol.
Common symbol character codes
For more character symbols, see the Character Map installed on your computer, ASCII character codes, or Unicode character code charts by script.
| Glyph | Code | Glyph | Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Currency symbols | |||
| £ | ALT+0163 | ¥ | ALT+0165 |
| ¢ | ALT+0162 | $ | 0024+ALT+X |
| € | ALT+0128 | ¤ | ALT+0164 |
| Legal symbols | |||
| © | ALT+0169 | ® | ALT+0174 |
| § | ALT+0167 | ™ | ALT+0153 |
| Mathematical symbols | |||
| ° | ALT+0176 | º | ALT+0186 |
| √ | 221A+ALT+X | + | ALT+43 |
| # | ALT+35 | µ | ALT+0181 |
| < | ALT+60 | > | ALT+62 |
| % | ALT+37 | ( | ALT+40 |
| [ | ALT+91 | ) | ALT+41 |
| ] | ALT+93 | ∆ | 2206+ALT+X |
| Fractions | |||
| ¼ | ALT+0188 | ½ | ALT+0189 |
| ¾ | ALT+0190 | ||
| Punctuation and dialectic symbols | |||
| ? | ALT+63 | ¿ | ALT+0191 |
| ! | ALT+33 | ‼ | 203+ALT+X |
| - | ALT+45 | ' | ALT+39 |
| " | ALT+34 | , | ALT+44 |
| . | ALT+46 | | | ALT+124 |
| / | ALT+47 | \ | ALT+92 |
| ` | ALT+96 | ^ | ALT+94 |
| « | ALT+0171 | » | ALT+0187 |
| « | ALT+174 | » | ALT+175 |
| ~ | ALT+126 | & | ALT+38 |
| : | ALT+58 | { | ALT+123 |
| ; | ALT+59 | } | ALT+125 |
| Form symbols | |||
| □ | 25A1+ALT+X | √ | 221A+ALT+X |
Common diacritical character codes
For a complete list of the glyphs and their character codes, see the Character Map.
| Glyph | Code | Glyph | Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ã | ALT+0195 | å | ALT+0229 |
| Å | ALT+143 | å | ALT+134 |
| Ä | ALT+142 | ä | ALT+132 |
| À | ALT+0192 | à | ALT+133 |
| Á | ALT+0193 | á | ALT+160 |
| Â | ALT+0194 | â | ALT+131 |
| Ç | ALT+128 | ç | ALT+135 |
| Č | 010C+ALT+X | č | 010D+ALT+X |
| É | ALT+144 | é | ALT+130 |
| È | ALT+0200 | è | ALT+138 |
| Ê | ALT+202 | ê | ALT+136 |
| Ë | ALT+203 | ë | ALT+137 |
| Ĕ | 0114+ALT+X | ĕ | 0115+ALT+X |
| Ğ | 011E+ALT+X | ğ | 011F+ALT+X |
| Ģ | 0122+ALT+X | ģ | 0123+ALT+X |
| Ï | ALT+0207 | ï | ALT+139 |
| Î | ALT+0206 | î | ALT+140 |
| Í | ALT+0205 | í | ALT+161 |
| Ì | ALT+0204 | ì | ALT+141 |
| Ñ | ALT+165 | ñ | ALT+164 |
| Ö | ALT+153 | ö | ALT+148 |
| Ô | ALT+212 | ô | ALT+147 |
| Ō | 014C+ALT+X | ō | 014D+ALT+X |
| Ò | ALT+0210 | ò | ALT+149 |
| Ó | ALT+0211 | ó | ALT+162 |
| Ø | ALT+0216 | ø | 00F8+ALT+X |
| Ŝ | 015C+ALT+X | ŝ | 015D+ALT+X |
| Ş | 015E+ALT+X | ş | 015F+ALT+X |
| Ü | ALT+154 | ü | ALT+129 |
| Ū | ALT+016A | ū | 016B+ALT+X |
| Û | ALT+0219 | û | ALT+150 |
| Ù | ALT+0217 | ù | ALT+151 |
| Ú | 00DA+ALT+X | ú | ALT+163 |
| Ÿ | 0159+ALT+X | ÿ | ALT+152 |
Character codes for ligature characters
For more information about typographic ligatures, see Typographic ligature. For more, see Character Map.
| Glyph | Code | Glyph | Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Æ | ALT+0198 | æ | ALT+0230 |
| ß | ALT+0223 | ß | ALT+225 |
| Œ | ALT+0140 | œ | ALT+0156 |
| ʩ | 02A9+ALT+X | ||
| ʣ | 02A3+ALT+X | ʥ | 02A5+ALT+X |
| ʪ | 02AA+ALT+X | ʫ | 02AB+ALT+X |
| ʦ | 0246+ALT+X | ʧ | 02A7+ALT+X |
| Љ | 0409+ALT+X | Ю | 042E+ALT+X |
| Њ | 040A+ALT+X | Ѿ | 047E+ALT+x |
| Ы | 042B+ALT+X | Ѩ | 0468+ALT+X |
| Ѭ | 049C+ALT+X | ﷲ | FDF2+ALT+X |
ASCII nonprinting control characters
ASCII table numbers 0–31 are assigned for control characters used to control some peripheral devices such as printers.
| Decimal | Character | Decimal | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| null | 0 | data link escape | 16 |
| start of heading | 1 | device control 1 | 17 |
| start of text | 2 | device control 2 | 18 |
| end of text | 3 | device control 3 | 19 |
| end of transmission | 4 | device control 4 | 20 |
| inquiry | 5 | negative acknowledge | 21 |
| acknowledge | 6 | synchronous idle | 22 |
| bell | 7 | end of transmission block | 23 |
| backspace | 8 | cancel | 24 |
| horizontal tab | 9 | end of medium | 25 |
| line feed/new line | 10 | substitute | 26 |
| vertical tab | 11 | escape | 27 |
| form feed/new page | 12 | file separator | 28 |
| carriage return | 13 | group separator | 29 |
| shift out | 14 | record separator | 30 |
| shift in | 15 | unit separator | 31 |
| space | 32 | DEL | 127 |