How to Type the Trademark Symbol (™) and Registered Symbol (®)

The trademark symbol (™) and registered symbol (®) show up constantly in branding, but most keyboards hide them behind shortcuts or menus. Here is every reliable way to type them on any device.

Quick answer

Windows: Alt codes

1. Make sure you have a full keyboard with a numeric keypad, or turn on Num Lock if your laptop has an embedded one (often Fn+NumLk).
2. Hold Alt.
3. On the numeric keypad, type 0153 for ™ or 0174 for ®.
4. Release Alt. The symbol appears.

These codes have a leading zero, which tells Windows to use the Windows-1252 character set, the correct one for these symbols. Dropping the zero (Alt+153 or Alt+174) can insert a different character depending on the app and code page, so always include the zero.

Windows emoji and symbol panel

Press Windows key + period (.) or Windows key + semicolon (;) to open the emoji panel, then click the Omega (Ω) symbols tab. Search is limited, but you can scroll to punctuation and symbols to find ™ and ®.

Mac: Option key shortcuts

1. Press Option+2 for ™.
2. Press Option+R for ®.

No modifier key combos needed beyond that, and they work in nearly every Mac app including Safari, Mail, and Pages.

Mac Character Viewer

If a shortcut ever fails or you want ℠ (service mark), open the Character Viewer: press Control+Command+Space, then search for ‘trademark’ or ‘registered’ in the search box and double-click the result to insert it.

iPhone and iPad

Neither ™ nor ® is on the iOS keyboard, and no key has them in its press-and-hold menu. Two methods work:

1. Copy and paste: copy ™ or ® from this page (tap a tile above) and paste it where you need it.
2. Text Replacement (best if you use them often): go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement, tap +, paste ™ into Phrase and type a shortcut such as tmk into Shortcut. Do the same for ® with a shortcut such as rgd. Typing the shortcut followed by a space now inserts the symbol in any app.

Android

Keyboards differ, so the reliable methods are the same as on iPhone:

1. Copy and paste the symbol from this page.
2. A text shortcut: Gboard and Samsung Keyboard both let you save a phrase with a shortcut in their settings (on Gboard, Dictionary > Personal dictionary). Save ™ with a shortcut such as tmk and ® with rgd.

Some keyboards also show ™ and ® on a secondary symbols page (on Gboard, tap ?123, then =<), but placement varies by keyboard and version.

Microsoft Word

Word has three methods:

1. Autocorrect: type (tm) and Word converts it to ™ automatically. Type (r) and it converts to ®.
2. Alt+X method: type 2122 then press Alt+X to convert the hex code into ™. Type 00AE then Alt+X for ®.
3. Insert Symbol: go to Insert > Symbol > More Symbols, choose the (normal text) font, and pick ® from the Latin-1 Supplement subset or ™ from the Letterlike Symbols subset.

The Alt+0153 and Alt+0174 Windows codes also work inside Word.

Excel and Google Sheets

Use a formula to insert the symbol into a cell:

• Excel and Google Sheets: =UNICHAR(8482) for ™ and =UNICHAR(174) for ®. These use Unicode code points and work on every platform.
• Excel for Windows also accepts =CHAR(153) for ™ and =CHAR(174) for ®, because its CHAR function uses the Windows-1252 table. Excel for Mac uses a different table, so stick with UNICHAR there.

Google Docs

1. Click Insert > Special characters.
2. Type ‘trademark’ or ‘registered’ into the search box.
3. Click the symbol to insert it at the cursor.

Google Docs also auto-converts (tm) and (r) while typing, similar to Word.

HTML, CSS, and JavaScript

All three are standard Unicode characters, so they display correctly in any UTF-8 encoded page without special fonts.

Difference between ™, ®, and ℠

• ™ marks a trademark claim on goods, used before formal government registration or when registration is not sought.
• ® indicates the mark is officially registered with a trademark office, such as the USPTO, and using it without registration can carry legal consequences in some jurisdictions.
• ℠ stands for service mark, used the same way as ™ but specifically for services rather than physical goods.

None of these symbols are required by law to protect a mark, but using them correctly signals your legal status to competitors and customers.

Troubleshooting

• Alt code does nothing: your keyboard may lack a numeric keypad. Enable the on-screen numeric keypad or use the embedded Fn+number keys with Num Lock on.
• Wrong character appears: you likely typed Alt+153 instead of Alt+0153. Always include the leading zero for these two symbols.
• Symbol shows as a box or question mark: the font you’re using lacks the glyph. Switch to a common system font like Arial or Calibri.
• Alt+X in Word inserts the wrong thing: make sure there’s no extra space between the hex code and the cursor before pressing Alt+X.

Frequently asked questions