How to Type the Copyright Symbol (©) on Any Device

The copyright symbol (©) shows up in legal notices, footers, and credits everywhere, but most keyboards hide it a layer or two below the keys you can see. Here is every reliable way to type it, no matter what device you’re using.

Quick answer

If you just need to grab the symbol once, copy this: ©

Windows: Alt code

1. Make sure you have a physical numeric keypad, or enable the on-screen numpad in a laptop’s function layer (often Fn+NumLock).
2. Place your cursor where you want the symbol.
3. Hold Alt and type 0169 on the numpad, including the leading zero.
4. Release Alt. The © symbol appears.

This code works because 0169 is the Windows-1252 code page position for ©. Dropping the leading zero (Alt+169) produces a different character from the older CP437 set on many systems, so always include the zero.

Windows emoji and symbol panel

Press Win+. (period) or Win+; to open the emoji panel, then click the Omega (Ω) symbols tab. Search is limited, but you can browse the symbols tab to find ©, or use the Alt code above for speed.

Mac: Option shortcut

Press Option+G to type © directly in any app, including Safari, Mail, and Pages. This is the fastest method on macOS and works without opening any menu.

You can also open Character Viewer (Control+Command+Space), type “copyright” in the search box, and double-click the result to insert it.

iPhone and iPad

There is no copyright key on the standard iOS keyboard and no long-press shortcut on the letter keys for it. Two practical options:

1. Copy and paste: copy © from a note, message, or this page, then paste it wherever you need it.
2. Text replacement: go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement, tap +, set the phrase to © (paste it in) and a shortcut like cpy. Typing cpy anywhere will now suggest the © symbol.

Android

Android keyboards vary by manufacturer, so the most reliable options are:

1. Copy and paste: copy © from this page or a note and paste it where you need it.
2. Emoji panel: open your keyboard’s emoji panel and search “copyright” if your keyboard supports emoji search.
3. Text shortcut: add a shortcut that expands to © in your keyboard’s settings, under Dictionary or Text shortcuts.

Microsoft Word

Word has four reliable methods:

1. AutoCorrect: type (c) (lowercase, in parentheses) and press space or type another character. Word automatically converts it to ©.
2. Alt code: use Alt+0169 as described above; this works in Word just like in any Windows app.
3. Alt+X method: type 00A9 then immediately press Alt+X. Word converts the hex code into ©. This trick only works in Word and WordPad, not in general Windows text fields.
4. Insert Symbol: go to Insert > Symbol > More Symbols, select the (normal text) font, and look under the Latin-1 Supplement block, or type 00A9 in the character code box at the bottom.

If AutoCorrect is turned off or you’ve disabled this specific replacement, go to File > Options > Proofing > AutoCorrect Options and confirm (c) to © is checked.

Google Docs

1. Type (c) and press space; Google Docs automatically converts it to © in most documents, matching Word’s behavior.
2. Or go to Insert > Special characters, then search “copyright” in the search box and click the symbol.

Excel and Google Sheets

Spreadsheets don’t autocorrect text the same way documents do, so use a formula:

• Excel: =CHAR(169) on Windows (code page 1252), or =UNICHAR(169) which works consistently across platforms.
• Google Sheets: =CHAR(169) returns the copyright symbol directly.

You can also just paste © into a cell if you don’t need a formula.

HTML, CSS, and JavaScript

For web pages, use one of these:

• HTML entity: ©
• Numeric reference: © or hex ©
• Raw character: paste © directly into UTF-8 encoded HTML
• CSS generated content: content: "\00A9"; inside a ::before or ::after rule
• JavaScript string: "\u00A9" produces © when printed or inserted into the DOM

How to format a copyright notice

A standard copyright line follows this pattern:

© [year] [name of owner]. All rights reserved.

For example: © 2024 Acme Studio. All rights reserved. The year should be the year of first publication, or a range like 2019–2024 if the work has been updated continuously. The phrase “All rights reserved” is a legal holdover from older international treaties and isn’t strictly required in most countries today, but it’s still widely used for clarity. You don’t need to register anything or add the symbol for copyright protection to exist, since it applies automatically when a work is created, but using the notice helps communicate ownership to anyone who sees your work.

Troubleshooting

Alt code types a random letter or number instead of ©. Your laptop doesn’t have a true numpad active. Enable the numeric overlay (often Fn+NumLock or a dedicated NumLk key) and try again, or switch to the Windows emoji panel (Win+.) instead.

The symbol shows as a box or question mark. The font you’re using doesn’t include the © glyph. Switch to a common system font like Arial, Calibri, or Times New Roman, which all support it.

AutoCorrect isn’t converting (c) to ©. Check that the replacement is still enabled in your AutoCorrect settings, or insert the symbol manually using Alt+X or the Insert Symbol dialog instead.

Frequently asked questions