Pound symbol (£)
U+00A3 · POUND SIGN · Unicode 1.1 (1993)
How to type £
Windows
Alt code (numeric keypad)
Alt+0163
Turn on Num Lock, hold the Alt key, type 0163 on the numeric keypad and let go of Alt: £ appears.
The shorter code Alt+156 works too in most programs.
Word and Outlook: Alt + X
00A3 Alt+X
Type 00A3 and press Alt+X right after it: Word turns the code into £. Press Alt+X again to turn it back into the code.
Emoji and symbols panel (Windows 10 and 11)
Win+.
Press Win + full stop (.) to open the panel, go to the Symbols tab (Ω) and pick £.
No numeric keypad on your laptop? See the other ways in our Alt codes guide.
Mac
Keyboard shortcut (U.S. layout)
⌥ Option+3
Press ⌥ Option+3 to type £. This is on the standard U.S. and U.S. English Mac layouts.
Character Viewer
Ctrl+⌘ Cmd+Space
Press Ctrl+⌘+Space (or the Globe key + E), search for “pound symbol” and click £ to insert it.
iPhone
Long press on the keyboard
123 → $
Tap 123, then press and hold $. Slide your finger to £ in the pop-up and let go.
Checked on the English (US) keyboard. Other keyboard languages may place it elsewhere.
Make a shortcut (Text Replacement)
Turn a short word into £ once and type it in any app:
- Copy £ from this page.
- Open Settings › General › Keyboard › Text Replacement and tap +.
- Paste £ as the Phrase and type a Shortcut, for example ;pound.
- Now type ;pound anywhere: the keyboard suggests £.
Android
Symbol page in Gboard
?123 → =\<
Tap ?123, then =\<: £ has its own key there.
Checked on the English (US) keyboard. Other keyboard languages may place it elsewhere.
Make a shortcut (Gboard personal dictionary)
Teach your keyboard a short word that turns into £:
- Copy £ from this page.
- Open Gboard settings › Dictionary › Personal dictionary, choose your language and tap +.
- Paste £ as the word and type a shortcut, for example ;pound.
- Type ;pound in any app and tap £ in the suggestions.
Linux
Unicode input
Ctrl+Shift+U 00a3 Enter
Press Ctrl+Shift+U, type 00a3 and press Enter or Space. Works in GTK apps and with IBus (GNOME, Ubuntu, Fedora).
What £ means and how it is used
The pound sign £ (U+00A3) stands for the British pound sterling and comes from the L of the Latin libra. It goes before the number with no space: £25. In the United States 'pound sign' usually means the hash # on phone keypads, which explains many mixed-up searches. On a UK keyboard £ is Shift+3; on a US Mac it is Option+3.
Pound symbol (£) is the Unicode character U+00A3, officially called POUND SIGN. It is in the Latin-1 Supplement block and has been part of Unicode since version 1.1 (1993).
People also call it or search for it as: currency, EGP, GBP.
On this site it is part of the currency symbols (61 symbols), next to € $ ¥ ¢ ₽.
Codes for HTML, CSS and JavaScript
Tap Copy next to the code you need.
| HTML entity | £ | |
|---|---|---|
| HTML decimal | £ | |
| HTML hex | £ | |
| CSS | content: "\00A3"; | |
| JavaScript | \u00A3 | |
| URL | %C2%A3 | |
| UTF-8 bytes | C2 A3 | |
| Unicode | U+00A3 |
Will it show on my friend's phone?
Very likely yes: £ dates from Unicode 1.1 (1993), so every current system has a font for it.
Checking your device…
Don't confuse £ with
These look alike but are different characters. Search, sorting and screen readers treat them differently, so copy the one you mean.
- £Pound symbolU+00A3 · POUND SIGN
- LiraU+20A4 · LIRA SIGN · Currency Symbols
- Fullwidth pound signU+FFE1 · FULLWIDTH POUND SIGN · Halfwidth and Fullwidth Forms
Names in other languages
What £ is called in the 12 languages of this site (Unicode CLDR and our editors). Tap a name to open that language's page.
| Language | Name |
|---|---|
| English | Pound symbol |
| Português | Símbolo da libra esterlina |
| Español | Símbolo de la libra esterlina |
| Italiano | Simbolo sterlina |
| Français | Symbole livre sterling |
| Deutsch | Pfund-Zeichen |
| Türkçe | Sterlin sembolü |
| Bahasa Indonesia | Simbol pound sterling |
| Polski | Symbol funta |
| Русский | Знак фунта стерлингов |
| 日本語 | ポンド記号 |
| 한국어 | 파운드 기호 |
Related symbols
All Currency →Questions people ask
How do I type £ on a laptop without a numeric keypad?
On Windows press Win + full stop (.) and pick £ in the Symbols tab, or in Word type 00A3 and press Alt+X. On a Mac press ⌥ Option+3.
What is the difference between £ and ₤?
£ is the pound symbol (U+00A3). ₤ is a different character: lira (U+20A4, Currency Symbols block). They can look alike, but computers treat them as different letters, so a search for one will not find the other.
How do I type £ on an iPhone?
On the English keyboard tap 123, then press and hold $ and slide to £.
What is the HTML code for the pound symbol?
Use the entity £ or the numeric code £ (hex £). In CSS write \00A3, in JavaScript \u00A3.
Will £ show on every phone?
Very likely yes: £ dates from Unicode 1.1 (1993), so every current system has a font for it.