How to Get the Degree Sign on Any Device or Keyboard
The degree symbol (°) is one of those characters that almost everyone needs occasionally — typing a temperature, specifying an angle, or formatting a technical document — but it's not sitting on any standard keyboard key. Where it lives, and how you reach it, depends entirely on your device, operating system, and what you're doing with the text.
Why the Degree Sign Isn't on Your Keyboard
Standard keyboards follow a layout designed around the most frequently used characters in written language. Symbols like °, ©, or ™ are used often enough to be useful, but not often enough to earn a dedicated physical key. Instead, they're tucked into Unicode — a universal character encoding system that assigns every character a unique code point. The degree sign is U+00B0.
How you access that code point depends on your platform.
How to Type the Degree Sign on Windows 🖥️
Windows offers several methods, and the right one depends on your keyboard and workflow.
Using a Keyboard Shortcut (Numpad Required)
If your keyboard has a numeric keypad, hold Alt and type 0176 on the numpad (not the top-row numbers), then release Alt. The ° symbol will appear.
This is the classic Alt code method. It only works with Num Lock on and only on keyboards with a dedicated numpad — which rules out most laptops without an external keyboard.
Using the Windows Emoji Panel
Press Windows key + . (period) or Windows key + ; (semicolon) to open the emoji and symbols panel. Switch to the Omega (Ω) symbols tab, then search for "degree." This works in most text fields across Windows 10 and 11.
Using Character Map
Search for Character Map in the Start menu. Find the degree symbol, click Copy, and paste it where needed. Slower, but reliable for one-off use.
Copy-Paste from the Web
For occasional use, searching "degree symbol" in a browser and copying it from results is perfectly practical. Once copied, it pastes correctly in almost any application.
How to Type the Degree Sign on macOS
Mac keyboards don't use Alt codes, but macOS has its own shortcut system.
The Standard Shortcut
Press Option + Shift + 8 to insert ° directly. This works in most native macOS apps and many third-party applications. It's fast, muscle-memory friendly, and doesn't require any setup.
Using the Character Viewer
Go to Edit > Emoji & Symbols in most apps, or press Control + Command + Space. Search "degree" to find the symbol and double-click to insert it.
How to Type the Degree Sign on iPhone and iPad 📱
On iOS and iPadOS, the degree symbol is hidden in the number/symbol keyboard.
- Tap the 123 key to switch to the number pad.
- Press and hold the 0 (zero) key.
- A pop-up will show the ° symbol — slide to it and release.
This gesture works in the default Apple keyboard. If you're using a third-party keyboard app, the location may vary, but most follow a similar long-press pattern on the zero key.
How to Type the Degree Sign on Android
Android keyboards vary by manufacturer and app, but the most common method is similar to iOS:
- Switch to the numbers/symbols keyboard (usually the ?123 key).
- Long-press the 0 key — on many keyboards, ° will appear as an option.
On Samsung devices with the Samsung Keyboard, this works reliably. On Google's Gboard, the degree sign is also accessible via long-press on zero.
Some Android keyboards place it under a dedicated symbols page (often a second layer of the symbols keyboard, marked =< or similar). If long-press doesn't work, browsing the extended symbols panel usually turns it up.
How to Insert the Degree Sign in Specific Applications
| Application | Method |
|---|---|
| Microsoft Word | Insert > Symbol, or Alt+0176 on numpad |
| Google Docs | Insert > Special Characters, search "degree" |
| Excel | Alt+0176 (numpad) or paste from Character Map |
| HTML / Web Code | Use ° or ° |
| LaTeX | Use degree (with gensymb package) or ^circ |
| CSS | Use 0B0 in content strings |
The Unicode Approach: Works Almost Everywhere
For anyone working in code, markdown, or cross-platform documents, knowing the Unicode point is the most portable method. In many Windows apps, you can type 00B0 then press Alt+X to convert it inline to °. In HTML and web contexts, ° is the standard named entity.
The underlying character is always the same — just the input method changes.
What Actually Determines Your Best Method
The degree sign is technically simple to produce, but the practical path varies based on factors that are specific to your situation:
- Your device type — desktop, laptop, tablet, or phone changes which shortcuts are available
- Your keyboard model — numpad presence or absence eliminates certain Windows shortcuts entirely
- Your operating system version — older versions of Windows and macOS may not have the emoji panel or updated Character Viewer
- Your application — some apps intercept keyboard shortcuts or use their own symbol insertion tools
- How often you need it — someone who types temperatures daily benefits from learning a shortcut; someone who needs it once a month may prefer copy-paste or a symbol panel
- Your keyboard language/layout — non-US layouts sometimes position symbols differently, and some international keyboards include ° more accessibly than others
Someone on a Windows desktop with a full keyboard, writing in Word, has different best options than someone drafting a Google Doc on a MacBook, or texting a recipe temperature on an Android phone. The symbol itself is universal — but the workflow that gets you there isn't.