The degree Fahrenheit symbol is ℉, Unicode U+2109. There’s no standard Windows Alt code for it, so the fastest routes are copying it from the button below, typing 2109 then pressing Alt+X in Word, or pressing Ctrl+Shift+U and 2109 on a Chromebook.
On a Mac, open Character Viewer with Ctrl+Cmd+Space and search “fahrenheit. “
Worth knowing before you start: ℉ is a single “compatibility” glyph that fits one character cell. In everyday US writing you’ll far more often see °F typed as two characters, a degree sign followed by a capital F. Use the single ℉ only when a form, font, or layout specifically calls for one character.
Quick reference table
| Method | Input | Works in |
|---|---|---|
| Windows Alt code | No standard Alt code | — |
| Windows (Unicode-aware apps) | 2109 then Alt+X in Word (decimal) | Word, WordPad |
| Word Alt+X | 2109 (hex), then Alt+X | Word, Outlook, OneNote |
| Mac | Character Viewer, search “fahrenheit” | Most Mac apps |
| Chromebook / Linux | Ctrl+Shift+U, then 2109 (hex) | ChromeOS, Linux |
| Excel & Google Sheets | =UNICHAR(8457) | Excel, Sheets |
| HTML | ℉ or ℉ | Web pages |
| CSS | \2109 | Stylesheets |
| Unicode code point | U+2109 | Universal |
Windows
Unlike the plain degree sign, ℉ has no short CP1252 Alt code, so the familiar Alt+0176-style trick has no entry for it. If you want symbols that do have short codes, the full symbol Alt code list covers them.
You can still type it with the decimal code point in Unicode-aware apps:
- Turn on Num Lock.
- Hold Alt and type 8457 on the numeric keypad.
- Release Alt. ℉ appears.
This code is decimal, and it only lands in Unicode-aware apps like Word and WordPad. In older Notepad builds, browsers, and many chat boxes it does nothing. It also needs a real numeric keypad; the top-row number keys won’t trigger it.
For everywhere else, use Character Map. Search the Start menu for charmap, type “degree fahrenheit” in its search box or scroll to U+2109, then click Select and Copy.
The Win+. emoji panel focuses on emoji and common symbols and rarely surfaces ℉, so Character Map is the reliable Windows fallback.
Mac
Mac has no Alt codes and no Option-key combination for ℉. Use Character Viewer instead:
- Press Ctrl+Cmd+Space to open Character Viewer.
- Type “fahrenheit” in the search field.
- Double-click ℉ to insert it, or drag it into place.
If Character Viewer feels slow, copy ℉ from the button near the top of this page and paste. Option combinations give you accents and a few symbols, but this one isn’t among them.
Word, Outlook, OneNote, and PowerPoint
Word has the quickest desktop method, the Alt+X toggle:
- Type 2109, the hexadecimal code point.
- Press Alt+X. Word converts it to ℉.
If a letter or digit sits right before 2109, Word may pull it into the code. Put a space in front, or select just 2109 first.
Pressing Alt+X again toggles the glyph back to the number. This works in Word, Outlook, and OneNote, but not in PowerPoint or Excel.
The Insert Symbol dialog works in every Office app, PowerPoint included. Go to Insert → Symbol → More Symbols, set the “from” dropdown to Unicode (hex), type 2109 in the Character code box, and click Insert.
Excel and Google Sheets
Both spreadsheets build the glyph from its decimal code point with one formula:
- Type
=UNICHAR(8457)in a cell and press Enter to return ℉. - To lock it in as plain text, copy the cell, then Paste Special → Values.
Excel also offers Insert → Symbol, where the character code 2109 (hex) inserts ℉. Google Sheets has no Insert Symbol menu at all, so =UNICHAR(8457) or a paste is the way in. If you paste using an OS input method, press F2 first to put the cell into edit mode.
Google Docs
- Open Insert → Special characters.
- Type “fahrenheit” in the search box, or sketch the symbol in the draw pad.
- Click ℉ in the results to drop it into your document.
Google Docs doesn’t support the Alt+X trick, so the search-or-draw picker is the built-in route. A straight paste from the copy button works too.
iPhone and Android
Neither phone keyboard has a ℉ key, and the single glyph isn’t tucked away on the symbol pages either. Two options are reliable.
Paste it: copy ℉ once from the button above, then paste wherever you need it. To make it permanent, set up a text replacement:
- iPhone: Settings → General → Keyboard → Text Replacement → +, paste ℉ into Phrase and set a shortcut like “degf”.
- Android (Gboard): Settings → System → Languages & input → Gboard → Dictionary → Personal dictionary, add ℉ with a short trigger.
Most people skip all that and type °F as two characters. Long-press the 0 key on the number and symbol layout to get °, then type a capital F.
Chromebook
ChromeOS has no Alt codes, and plugging in a USB numpad won’t change that, because Alt codes are Windows software rather than keypad hardware. Use the Unicode shortcut:
- Press Ctrl+Shift+U. An underlined u appears.
- Type 2109, the hex code.
- Press Enter or Space. ℉ appears.
Launcher+Shift+Space opens the emoji and symbol picker, and newer Chromebooks have a dedicated Quick Insert key. If a web text field swallows Ctrl+Shift+U, paste the character instead.
Notion, Slack, Discord, and Canva
None of these apps has a keyboard shortcut for ℉. Paste it, and make it repeatable with a text replacement set at the operating-system level:
- On Mac, add ℉ under System Settings → Keyboard → Text Replacements. It then expands automatically inside Slack, Discord, Notion, and Canva.
- On iPhone or Android, the text replacement from the mobile section carries into these apps too.
- Slack and Discord read
:codes:as emoji, and ℉ isn’t an emoji, so there’s no:fahrenheit:shortcode. Paste is the honest answer. - In Canva, add or click into a text box first, then paste.
HTML and CSS
℉ has no named HTML entity, so use a numeric character reference: ℉ (decimal) or ℉ (hex). Both render ℉. In CSS, escape it as \2109, for example content: "\2109"; on a pseudo-element.
For web temperatures, many authors write °F as °F (two characters) rather than the single ℉, because ℉ can render inconsistently and some screen readers announce it oddly. Reach for ℉ when a design grid or East Asian layout genuinely needs one glyph in one cell.
When ℉ doesn’t show up right
- It shows as a box (□) or a question mark: the font lacks the glyph. Switch to a broad system font such as Arial, Segoe UI, Times New Roman, or Noto, or paste it and let the app substitute a font. ℉ sits in the Letterlike Symbols range, and plain-text and decorative fonts sometimes skip it.
- It looks too wide or oddly spaced: ℉ is a full-width compatibility character built for East Asian text, so in some fonts it fills a full cell and dwarfs °F. When spacing matters, use ° followed by F.
- You meant °F, not ℉: at small sizes the single glyph and the two-character version look nearly identical. If a spell-checker, search, or data field behaves oddly, you may have the single ℉ where a plain degree sign was expected.
- Confused with ℃: the Celsius glyph is U+2103, a separate character.
Where the degree Fahrenheit symbol is used
℉ turns up in weather readouts, thermostats, oven and cooking temperatures, and medical or HVAC readings across the United States and a handful of other regions. The single-cell glyph appears most in Japanese, Chinese, and Korean typesetting, where full-width symbols line up neatly with surrounding characters. In ordinary English writing, °F typed as two characters is the norm.
Related symbols
℉ sits next to a few characters people mix it up with:
- ℃ is the metric twin with the same single-cell design. See how to type the degree Celsius symbol.
- ° is the standalone degree sign you combine with F or C in everyday text, and it’s usually what people actually need. The degree symbol guide covers it.
- °F written as two characters is the recommended form in most US style guides; the single ℉ is the compatibility alternative.
Related guides
- Look up any symbol’s shortcuts with the Alt code finder tool.
- Browse more math and science symbols.
- Pi symbol (π): how to type it in Word and Excel.
- How to type the omega symbol (Ω) fast.
- Sigma symbol (Σ): type it on any keyboard.
Frequently asked questions
Why doesn’t 2109 then Alt+X in Word work in Notepad or my web browser?
2109 then Alt+X in Word is a decimal Unicode code, and only Unicode-aware apps such as Microsoft Word and WordPad read it. Older Notepad builds, browsers, and many chat boxes ignore it and insert nothing. Copy ℉ from the button at the top of the page, use Ctrl+Shift+U on a Chromebook, or =UNICHAR(8457) in a spreadsheet.
Should I use the single ℉ symbol or type °F as two characters?
For most documents, type °F as a degree sign followed by F. It spaces and line-breaks predictably, and nearly every font has both characters. Use the single ℉ only when a form field, a fixed-width layout, or East Asian typesetting needs one character in one cell.
Does the ℉ symbol work in file names and URLs?
Modern Windows, macOS, and Linux accept ℉ in file names, but it’s safer to avoid non-ASCII characters there to dodge sync and upload glitches. In a URL, ℉ has to be percent-encoded as %E2%84%89, so a plain “F” or the word “fahrenheit” is the practical choice.
How do I make Fahrenheit readable for screen readers?
Screen readers handle the single ℉ inconsistently; some say “degree Fahrenheit,” others skip it. Writing “°F” or spelling out “degrees Fahrenheit” is the safer, more predictable choice for accessibility, especially on the web.
Why is ℉ wider than the letters around it?
℉ is a full-width compatibility glyph designed to fill one cell in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean text. In some fonts it keeps that full-width footprint and looks larger than the surrounding Latin letters. Switch to °F, or apply a font that draws ℉ at normal width.