The symbols you need for homework, notes and messages, as plain text that pastes anywhere.
Math words to try
Tap a word to put it in the box above, or type it yourself with the keys shown.
| Word | Meaning | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Circle equation | tap the symbols | |
| Square root of two | tap the symbols | |
| Not equal | tap the symbols | |
| For every real x | tap the symbols | |
| A is a subset of B | tap the symbols |
Plain-text maths that pastes anywhere
Every symbol on this keyboard is an ordinary Unicode character, the same kind of character as a letter. That means it survives being pasted into places that do not support equations: a chat message, an email subject line, a spreadsheet cell, a form, a text file or a comment box. x² + y² = r² stays exactly that.
For anything more than a line of notation, such as fractions stacked over a bar, matrices or long derivations, use a real equation tool: the equation editor in Word or Google Docs, or LaTeX. This keyboard is for the times when a symbol has to go somewhere those tools cannot reach.
Symbols that look alike
- Minus − and hyphen -: the minus sign on this keyboard is the proper minus, the same width as the plus sign. The hyphen on your keyboard is shorter and is what most people type; the minus lines up better in formulas.
- Multiplication × and the letter x: × is the multiplication sign. The middle dot · is the other common way to write multiplication, especially between letters: 2·π·r.
- Degree ° and superscript zero ⁰: use ° for angles and temperatures. ⁰ is an exponent, as in 10⁰ = 1.
- Prime ′ and apostrophe ': the prime marks derivatives (f′) and feet and minutes; the double prime ″ marks inches and seconds.
- Greek Σ and the summation ∑: ∑ is the n-ary summation operator, and Σ is the capital Greek letter sigma. They look similar, but screen readers and search engines treat them differently.
Superscripts and subscripts
Unicode has superscript and subscript forms of the digits and a few signs, and they are in the last-but-one group. They are enough for exponents (x², 2¹⁰, 10⁻³), chemical formulas (H₂O, CO₂) and indices (a₁, a₂, aₙ with the superscript n). They do not exist for every letter, which is one of the limits of plain-text maths.
Typing maths symbols on your own device
- Windows: Win+. opens the emoji and symbol panel, which has a Math Symbols tab. With Num Lock on, Alt codes type a few: Alt+0177 ±, 0215 ×, 0247 ÷, 0176 °, 0178 ², 0179 ³.
- Mac: Ctrl+Cmd+Space opens the Character Viewer. Option shortcuts include Option+= ≠, Option+Shift+= ±, Option+/ ÷, Option+V √, Option+5 ∞ and Option+< ≤.
- Word and Google Docs: Insert, Equation (or Alt+= in Word) opens the equation editor, which accepts LaTeX-style commands such as \sqrt and \sum.