How to Insert the Degree Symbol in Microsoft Word

Whether you're writing about temperature, angles, or coordinates, the degree symbol (°) is one of those characters that isn't sitting on your keyboard — but Word gives you several reliable ways to insert it. Which method works best depends on how often you need it, what kind of keyboard you're using, and how you prefer to work.

Why the Degree Symbol Isn't a Standard Key

Most keyboards are designed around the characters used most frequently in everyday typing. Symbols like °, ©, or ™ are common enough to need regularly, but not common enough to earn their own dedicated key. That puts them in a category Word handles through shortcuts, special character menus, or Unicode input — each with its own trade-offs in speed and accessibility.

Method 1: Keyboard Shortcut (Windows)

The fastest method for most Windows users is a key combination:

Press and hold Alt, then type 0176 on the numeric keypad, then release Alt.

This produces: °

A few important details:

• This only works with the numeric keypad (the number cluster on the right side of a full-size keyboard), not the number row at the top.
• Num Lock must be on for this to work.
• If you're on a laptop without a dedicated numeric keypad, this method may not be available — or it may require pressing a Fn key alongside it, depending on your laptop's layout.

Method 2: Keyboard Shortcut (Mac)

On a Mac, the shortcut is simpler and doesn't require a numeric keypad:

Press Option + Shift + 8.

This works across most Mac applications, including Word for Mac, and doesn't require any special mode to be active.

Method 3: Word's Built-In Shortcut

Microsoft Word has its own keyboard shortcut that works regardless of your operating system or keyboard type:

Press Ctrl + Shift + @, then press the spacebar.

This is a compose-style shortcut — the two-step input tells Word you want a symbol built around the @ character's diacritical family, and the spacebar confirms it as a standalone degree symbol rather than a modified letter.

This method is reliable and portable across different keyboard layouts, making it useful for laptop users who don't have a numeric keypad.

Method 4: Insert Symbol Menu

If you use the degree symbol occasionally and prefer a visual approach:

1. Click where you want the symbol to appear
2. Go to the Insert tab in the ribbon
3. Click Symbol → More Symbols
4. In the dialog box, set the Font to (normal text) and the Subset to Latin-1 Supplement
5. Find and select the ° symbol
6. Click Insert

This menu also shows you the shortcut key associated with any symbol you highlight — so it doubles as a learning tool if you want to memorize the shortcut later.

Method 5: AutoCorrect

If you type degree measurements constantly — in scientific reports, weather documents, or technical specs — you can set up AutoCorrect to replace a custom text string with the ° symbol automatically.

• Go to File → Options → Proofing → AutoCorrect Options
• In the Replace field, type something like deg or (deg)
• In the With field, paste the ° symbol
• Click Add, then OK

After that, every time you type your trigger text and press Space, Word replaces it with °. This approach suits high-volume users who find stopping for a keyboard shortcut disruptive to their workflow.

Method 6: Copy-Paste

For infrequent use, the most practical method is often the least technical: copy the symbol from somewhere and paste it into your document.

° ← you can copy this directly.

Paste it into Word and it will inherit your document's current font and formatting. For one-off uses, this requires no setup at all.

Comparing the Methods at a Glance 🔍

The Variables That Shape Which Method Works for You

Several factors determine which of these approaches is actually practical for your situation:

Keyboard type is the biggest variable. Full-size desktop keyboards with a numeric keypad open up the Alt code method. Compact laptop keyboards may block it entirely or require awkward Fn key combinations.

Operating system matters separately from keyboard type — Mac and Windows have different native shortcuts, and Word's built-in shortcut behaves slightly differently depending on which version and OS you're running.

Frequency of use changes the calculus considerably. If you insert the degree symbol once a month, a keyboard shortcut you'll forget isn't worth memorizing — copy-paste or the Insert menu makes more sense. If you're writing temperature logs or engineering documents daily, AutoCorrect or a memorized shortcut pays off quickly.

Word version can occasionally affect shortcut behavior. Word 365, Word 2019, and older desktop versions share most shortcuts, but there are occasional differences in how AutoCorrect and Symbol menus are organized across versions. 🖥️

When the Symbol Looks Wrong After Inserting

If your degree symbol appears too large, too small, or misaligned with surrounding text, it's almost always a font mismatch. The ° character is part of the standard Unicode set and displays correctly in most modern fonts — but if you've inserted it while a specialty or decorative font was active, it may render unexpectedly.

The fix is to select the symbol and apply the same font as the surrounding text.

The right method isn't universal. A developer working in Word on a Mac has different constraints than an office administrator on a Windows desktop with a full keyboard — and someone typing up a single recipe card has different priorities than a technician writing daily temperature reports. ⌨️ What you reach for naturally will depend on how your setup is configured and how often this symbol shows up in your work.