Special Symbols and Characters

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keyboard special characters and Alt codes

Keyboard special characters and Windows Alt codes

Almost every character with no key can be typed with Alt plus a number on the numeric keypad. What almost nobody explains is that there are two different codes: with a leading zero and without one. The Alt codes tab below lists both tables, already checked, with search by name.

Leading zero or not: two tables

With a leading zero, like Alt+0169, Windows uses the ANSI table Windows-1252. It covers ASCII (33 to 126), the Latin-1 range (160 to 255) and 27 extra characters between 128 and 159, such as € (Alt+0128), ™ (Alt+0153) and curly quotes. Without the zero, like Alt+169, the console OEM code applies: in Brazil it is CP850, in the US CP437. That is why Alt+169 can give ® on one system and a different character on another, while Alt+0169 gives © on any Western-language Windows.
ASCII has 95 printable characters (32 to 126): the space, 26 uppercase letters, 26 lowercase letters, 10 digits and 32 punctuation symbols, from ! to ~. The 32 symbols are in the tool's Keyboard (ASCII) category. OEM codes 1 to 31 show glyphs like ☺ (Alt+1), ♥ (Alt+3) and ♫ (Alt+14) in the console, but they depend on the program, and several editors ignore them. The blocks █ (Alt+219) and ░ (Alt+176) are the same in CP437 and CP850. With no numeric keypad, the Unicode code in Word (type 2665 and Alt+X) solves it.

Checked codes

Symbols with a leading zero (Windows-1252)

Input: © ® ™ € °
Expected output: Alt+0169 Alt+0174 Alt+0153 Alt+0128 Alt+0176

Unicode: U+00A9, U+00AE, U+2122, U+20AC and U+00B0.

Letters and operators

Input: é ç ñ ã × ÷
Expected output: Alt+0233 Alt+0231 Alt+0241 Alt+0227 Alt+0215 Alt+0247

All from the Latin-1 range of Windows-1252.

OEM glyphs without a zero

Input: ♥ █ ░ é
Expected output: Alt+3 Alt+219 Alt+176 Alt+130

All four have the same glyph in CP437 and CP850. Depends on the program.

Full tool FAQ

How do I copy and paste a symbol?

Click the symbol. It is copied to the clipboard and also added to the composition box. Then paste it with Ctrl+V (Cmd+V on Mac) into any field. On a phone, tap and hold the field and choose Paste.

Why do some symbols show up as a little box?

How do I type symbols with Alt codes on Windows?

How do I type a symbol by its Unicode code (U+2605)?

What is the difference between ♥, ♡ and ❤?

What is the invisible character and how do I use it?

Does it work on Instagram, WhatsApp, TikTok, Discord and in games?

How do I use a symbol in HTML, CSS and JavaScript?

What is the text style (U+FE0E)?

Is my data sent to any server?

Frequently asked questions

Do Alt+0169 and Alt+169 give the same character?

Not necessarily. Alt+0169 uses Windows-1252 and gives ©. Alt+169 uses the console OEM code, which varies with the system language. For the same result on any computer, use the leading zero.

The Alt code does not work, what now?

Check that NumLock is on and that you use the numeric keypad, not the number row at the top. On a laptop, enable the built-in keypad with Fn. Some apps and browsers also intercept Alt; test in Notepad.

Is there an Alt code for any symbol?

No. Alt codes cover only the characters of the 8-bit tables. For the rest, such as ★ or →, use the Unicode code (type 2605 and Alt+X in Word) or copy from the tool.

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keyboard special characters and Alt codes

Keyboard special characters and Windows Alt codes

Leading zero or not: two tables

With a leading zero, like Alt+0169, Windows uses the ANSI table Windows-1252. It covers ASCII (33 to 126), the Latin-1 range (160 to 255) and 27 extra characters between 128 and 159, such as € (Alt+0128), ™ (Alt+0153) and curly quotes. Without the zero, like Alt+169, the console OEM code applies: in Brazil it is CP850, in the US CP437. That is why Alt+169 can give ® on one system and a different character on another, while Alt+0169 gives © on any Western-language Windows.

ASCII has 95 printable characters (32 to 126): the space, 26 uppercase letters, 26 lowercase letters, 10 digits and 32 punctuation symbols, from ! to ~. The 32 symbols are in the tool's Keyboard (ASCII) category. OEM codes 1 to 31 show glyphs like ☺ (Alt+1), ♥ (Alt+3) and ♫ (Alt+14) in the console, but they depend on the program, and several editors ignore them. The blocks █ (Alt+219) and ░ (Alt+176) are the same in CP437 and CP850. With no numeric keypad, the Unicode code in Word (type 2665 and Alt+X) solves it.

Checked codes

Symbols with a leading zero (Windows-1252)

Input: © ® ™ € °
Expected output: Alt+0169 Alt+0174 Alt+0153 Alt+0128 Alt+0176

Unicode: U+00A9, U+00AE, U+2122, U+20AC and U+00B0.

Letters and operators

Input: é ç ñ ã × ÷
Expected output: Alt+0233 Alt+0231 Alt+0241 Alt+0227 Alt+0215 Alt+0247

All from the Latin-1 range of Windows-1252.

OEM glyphs without a zero

Input: ♥ █ ░ é
Expected output: Alt+3 Alt+219 Alt+176 Alt+130

All four have the same glyph in CP437 and CP850. Depends on the program.

Full tool FAQ

How do I copy and paste a symbol?

Click the symbol. It is copied to the clipboard and also added to the composition box. Then paste it with Ctrl+V (Cmd+V on Mac) into any field. On a phone, tap and hold the field and choose Paste.

Why do some symbols show up as a little box?

How do I type symbols with Alt codes on Windows?

How do I type a symbol by its Unicode code (U+2605)?

What is the difference between ♥, ♡ and ❤?

What is the invisible character and how do I use it?

Does it work on Instagram, WhatsApp, TikTok, Discord and in games?

How do I use a symbol in HTML, CSS and JavaScript?

What is the text style (U+FE0E)?

Is my data sent to any server?

Frequently asked questions

Do Alt+0169 and Alt+169 give the same character?

Not necessarily. Alt+0169 uses Windows-1252 and gives ©. Alt+169 uses the console OEM code, which varies with the system language. For the same result on any computer, use the leading zero.

The Alt code does not work, what now?

Is there an Alt code for any symbol?

No. Alt codes cover only the characters of the 8-bit tables. For the rest, such as ★ or →, use the Unicode code (type 2605 and Alt+X in Word) or copy from the tool.