How to Use the Windows 11 Character Map

While a standard physical keyboard provides quick access to letters, numbers, and common punctuation marks, it lacks the keys necessary for thousands of special symbols. If you need to type a copyright symbol (©), a trademark sign (™), a currency symbol like the Euro (€), or mathematical operators (∑), you cannot simply press a single key.

Instead of searching the internet to copy and paste these symbols every time you need them, Windows 11 includes a built-in utility designed specifically for this purpose: the Character Map.

How to Open the Character Map

The Character Map is a legacy Windows tool, meaning it is not pinned to your taskbar by default.

1. Click the Start button on your taskbar.
2. Type Character Map into the search bar.
3. Press Enter or click the top result to open the application.

A small window will appear containing a grid of hundreds of tiny symbols.

How to Find and Copy a Symbol

The grid displays the characters available within the currently selected font. Because different fonts support different symbols (for example, Wingdings consists entirely of pictures, while Arial contains standard typography), your first step is selecting the correct font.

1. Click the Font dropdown menu at the top of the window and select the font you are currently using in your document (e.g., Arial, Times New Roman, or Calibri).
2. Scroll through the grid to find the symbol you need. If the symbols are too small to see clearly, simply click and hold your mouse button on any symbol to reveal a magnified, zoomed-in preview.
3. Once you have found the correct symbol, click it so it is highlighted in blue.
4. Click the Select button at the bottom of the window. The symbol will appear in the “Characters to copy” text box. (You can repeat this process to select multiple symbols in a row).
5. Click the Copy button.

The symbol is now saved to your Windows clipboard. You can switch to your Word document, email, or web browser and press Ctrl + V to paste it.

How to Use Advanced Search

Scrolling through thousands of Unicode characters can be tedious. If you know exactly what you are looking for, the search function is much faster.

1. At the bottom of the Character Map window, check the box next to Advanced view. The window will expand to reveal new options.
2. Locate the Search for: text box at the very bottom.
3. Type a descriptive word for the symbol you need (for example, type “copyright”, “degree”, or “fraction”).
4. Click the Search button.

The grid will immediately filter out all unrelated characters, leaving only the specific symbols that match your search term.

Using Keyboard Shortcuts (Alt Codes)

If you find yourself using the exact same symbol frequently, opening the Character Map every time is inefficient. The Character Map also teaches you how to type symbols directly using your keyboard.

When you click on a symbol in the grid, look at the bottom right corner of the Character Map window. You will see a text string that says something like Keystroke: Alt+0169.

This is an Alt Code. To type this symbol without opening the Character Map:

1. Ensure your keyboard’s Num Lock is turned on. (Alt Codes only work using the dedicated numeric keypad on the right side of a full-sized keyboard, not the number row at the top).
2. Press and hold the Alt key.
3. Type the four-digit code on the numeric keypad (e.g., 0169).
4. Release the Alt key. The symbol will instantly appear.