Italian keyboard

Tastiera italiana

On a computer, hold Alt (Option on a Mac) and press the plain letter: Alt+E types è, twice gives é; Alt+A types à. Press it again for the next accent on that letter. The small label on each red key shows its shortcut.

The six accented vowels Italian actually uses, including the è and é that change meaning.

Italian words to try

Tap a word to put it in the box above, or type it yourself with the keys shown (only the special letters need a shortcut).

WordMeaningKeys
Why / becauseAlt+E ×2
CityAlt+A
CoffeeAlt+E
MoreAlt+U
It's trueAlt+Shift+E

Italian accent shortcuts

Each accented letter on this keyboard and the shortcut that types it from a US or UK keyboard. Hold Alt on Windows, Linux and ChromeOS, or Option on a Mac. Add Shift for the capital.

LetterCapitalShortcut
àÀAlt + A
èÈAlt + E
éÉAlt + E ×2
ìÌAlt + I
òÒAlt + O
ùÙAlt + U

Which accents Italian actually uses

Italian is sparing with accents. In normal writing they appear almost only on the last vowel of a word, to show that the stress falls there: città, perché, università, caffè, così, però, più. They also separate a few short words from look-alikes: è (is) and e (and), là (there) and la (the), sì (yes) and si (oneself), dà (gives) and da (from).

That is why this keyboard has only six red keys: à, è, é, ì, ò and ù. Those cover standard Italian spelling. The acute í, ó and ú appear only in dictionaries and some older texts to show pronunciation, and most Italian style guides do not use them.

è or é?

The one distinction that trips people up is between the grave è and the acute é. The grave marks an open e, as in è, caffè, tè and cioè. The acute marks a closed e, and it is the one used in perché, poiché, affinché, né, sé and in compounds of tre like ventitré. A useful shortcut: words ending in -ché always take é.

On this keyboard Alt+E types è, the more common one, and pressing it again changes it to é.

Why an apostrophe is not an accent

Italian keyboards have keys for à, è, é, ì, ò and ù but no easy way to type capital accented letters, so for years people wrote E' for È and perche' for perché. It is still common in emails and text messages, but it is a workaround, not correct spelling, and it looks wrong in anything formal. The capital È in particular starts a great many Italian sentences. Tap Shift and then the è key on this page to get it.

Typing Italian on your own device

  • Mac: Option+` then the vowel types the grave accent; Option+E then e types é. Holding a vowel down opens the accent menu.
  • Windows: the Italian layout has keys for the lower-case accented vowels. The United States-International layout gives the grave with ` then the vowel and the acute with ' then the vowel.
  • Alt codes: with Num Lock on, hold Alt and type 0224 à, 0232 è, 0233 é, 0236 ì, 0242 ò, 0249 ù, and 0200 for the capital È.
  • Phone: press and hold the vowel.

Frequently asked questions

How do I type è in Italian?

Tap the red è key or press Alt+E in the text box. On a Mac, press Option+` and then e. On a phone, press and hold e.

How do I type a capital È?

Tap Shift and then the è key here, or press Alt+Shift+E in the text box. On Windows you can also hold Alt and type 0200 on the number pad.

What is the difference between è and é?

è is an open e and is the more common form (è, caffè). é is a closed e and is used in perché, poiché, né and ventitré.

Which letters have accents in Italian?

In standard spelling: à, è, é, ì, ò and ù, almost always on the last vowel of a word.

Is writing E' instead of È acceptable?

It is common in informal messages but is a workaround for keyboards without the capital. Formal Italian uses È.