Tilde (~)
U+007E · TILDE · Unicode 1.1 (1993)
How to type ~
Windows
Alt code (numeric keypad)
Alt+126
Turn on Num Lock, hold the Alt key, type 126 on the numeric keypad and let go of Alt: ~ appears.
Uses the old DOS code page 437, which US-English Windows uses for Alt codes without a leading 0; on Windows set to other languages the result can differ.
Word and Outlook: Alt + X
007E Alt+X
Type 007E 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
Character Viewer
Ctrl+⌘ Cmd+Space
Press Ctrl+⌘+Space (or the Globe key + E), search for “tilde” and click ~ to insert it.
iPhone
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 ;tilde.
- Now type ;tilde anywhere: the keyboard suggests ~.
Android
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 ;tilde.
- Type ;tilde in any app and tap ~ in the suggestions.
Linux
Unicode input
Ctrl+Shift+U 007e Enter
Press Ctrl+Shift+U, type 007e and press Enter or Space. Works in GTK apps and with IBus (GNOME, Ubuntu, Fedora).
What ~ means and how it is used
The tilde ~ means 'about' in informal writing (~5 minutes), the home folder in Unix paths (~/Documents) and 'similar to' in maths. As an accent it sits on letters such as ñ and ã, but those are separate characters. On German keyboards it is AltGr++; on Italian keyboards it is missing, so Italians often copy it.
Tilde (~) is the Unicode character U+007E, officially called TILDE. It is in the Basic Latin block and has been part of Unicode since version 1.1 (1993).
On this site it is part of the punctuation (109 symbols), next to © ® ™ § ¶.
Codes for HTML, CSS and JavaScript
Tap Copy next to the code you need.
| HTML decimal | ~ | |
|---|---|---|
| HTML hex | ~ | |
| CSS | content: "\007E"; | |
| JavaScript | \u007E | |
| URL | ~ | |
| UTF-8 bytes | 7E | |
| Unicode | U+007E |
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.
- ~TildeU+007E · TILDE
- Small tildeU+02DC · SMALL TILDE · Spacing Modifier Letters
- Swung dashU+2053 · SWUNG DASH · General Punctuation
- Tilde operatorU+223C · TILDE OPERATOR · Mathematical Operators
- Wave dash (Japanese)U+301C · WAVE DASH · CJK Symbols and Punctuation
- Fullwidth tildeU+FF5E · FULLWIDTH TILDE · Halfwidth and Fullwidth Forms
- ῀U+1FC0 · Greek Extended
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 | Tilde |
| Português | Til |
| Español | Virgulilla (tilde) |
| Italiano | Simbolo tilde |
| Français | Tilde |
| Deutsch | Tilde |
| Türkçe | Tilde işareti |
| Bahasa Indonesia | Simbol tilde (gelombang) |
| Polski | Tylda |
| Русский | Тильда |
| 日本語 | チルダ |
| 한국어 | 물결표 |
Related symbols
All Punctuation →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 007E and press Alt+X.
What is the difference between ~ and ˜?
~ is the tilde (U+007E). ˜ is a different character: small tilde (U+02DC, Spacing Modifier Letters 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?
The iPhone keyboard has no key for ~. Copy it here, then add it in Settings › General › Keyboard › Text Replacement with a shortcut like ;tilde.
What is the HTML code for the tilde?
There is no named entity; use ~ or ~. In CSS write \007E, in JavaScript \u007E.
Will ~ show on every phone?
Very likely yes: ~ dates from Unicode 1.1 (1993), so every current system has a font for it.