The degree sign is the small raised circle used for angles and temperatures: 90° and 20°C. If you need it once, copy ° from this page and paste it where your cursor is. If you use it often, the methods below give you reliable ways to insert it in Word, Google Docs, Windows, and macOS.
Quick answer
| Where you are typing | Practical method |
|---|---|
| Windows with a numeric keypad | Hold Alt, type 0176 on the numeric keypad, then release Alt |
| Microsoft Word | Insert → Symbol → More Symbols, or use Alt + 0176 with a numeric keypad |
| Google Docs on a computer | Insert → Symbols → Special characters; find the degree sign |
| Mac | Open Character Viewer and search for “degree” |
| Any device | Copy ° and paste it |
Keyboard layouts and app support vary. The Windows Alt method in this table requires a numeric keypad; the number row at the top of a keyboard is not a substitute. Microsoft explicitly documents this limitation for the degree sign.
Copy the right character
Degree sign: ° — Unicode U+00B0. Select the character and use your normal Copy command, or find it in the Unit Symbols collection and activate its copy tile. Paste it after the number for an angle, as in 45°. For a temperature, follow the formatting convention required by your document or style guide; 20°C uses the degree sign plus the ordinary capital C.
Take care with º, the masculine ordinal indicator (U+00BA). It can resemble a degree sign in some fonts, but Unicode assigns it a different name and code point. For temperatures and angles, use ° (U+00B0). The Unicode Latin-1 chart lists both characters.
How to type ° on Windows
In a Windows application that accepts traditional Alt codes, put the cursor where the symbol belongs. Turn on Num Lock if your keypad needs it. Hold Alt, type 0176 using the numeric keypad, and release Alt. The result should be °. Microsoft gives this sequence in its degree-symbol instructions for Word.
On a laptop without a separate keypad, do not assume that Alt + 0176 will work with the number row. Open Windows Character Map instead: search for “Character Map” from the Start menu, choose a font that contains the sign, select °, copy it, and paste it into your document. Character Map is a Windows tool described in Microsoft’s character-insertion guidance. You can also copy the sign from this guide.
How to insert it in Microsoft Word
- Place the cursor at the insertion point.
- Choose Insert → Symbol → More Symbols.
- Select a font and choose Latin-1 Supplement in the subset list.
- Find the degree sign, select it, and choose Insert.
Word may then show it among recently used symbols. On a Windows keyboard with a numeric pad, you can instead use Alt + 0176. Word also supports Unicode-code conversion in some contexts: type 00B0 and press Alt + X. If adjacent characters cause the conversion to select the wrong code, select just the four hexadecimal digits before converting. Microsoft’s Unicode character-code documentation explains this feature. Do not expect Alt + X to work in every text field or every Office app.
How to insert it in Google Docs and Sheets
On a computer, open your document and use Insert → Symbols → Special characters in the current Google Docs menu. Find the character by name or enter its Unicode value 00B0, then click the result. Google’s special-characters help page describes the menu and search methods. Interface wording can change, so look for the Special characters dialog under Insert if the menu is arranged differently.
Google says you cannot insert special characters directly through that dialog in Sheets. Copy ° from a document or this page and paste it into the target cell instead. If the cell needs to hold a number for calculations, think about whether the degree sign belongs in a separate display label or number format rather than in the numeric value itself. Typing 20°C as plain text is useful for a label, but it is not the same as storing the number 20 for formulas.
How to type ° on a Mac
The most layout-independent method is Character Viewer. In an app that accepts text, choose Edit → Emoji & Symbols or use the Character Viewer shortcut configured on your Mac. Search for “degree,” identify DEGREE SIGN, and insert it. Apple’s Character Viewer guide explains searching and insertion. If you prefer a physical shortcut, open Keyboard Viewer, hold Option and Shift, and look at your active input source. Apple notes that the displayed characters change with the keyboard layout; this avoids assuming that one shortcut applies to every Mac.
On iPhone and Android
Mobile keyboards differ by app, language, and version. Switch to the symbols keyboard and look for °, or press and hold the 0 key to see whether your keyboard offers it. If neither method exposes the sign, copy ° from this guide and paste it into the message or document. A text-replacement shortcut may help if you use it frequently, but first check that the replacement does not trigger inside ordinary words or numbers.
If the shortcut does not work
- You get a different character: check whether you copied ° rather than º or another raised circle. Compare the Unicode code point if precision matters.
- Alt + 0176 does nothing: use the numeric keypad, check Num Lock, and try Word or Character Map. Browser fields and compact keyboards can handle Alt input differently.
- It shows a box: try a font that supports the degree sign or paste it into another app to isolate a font problem.
- The unit looks wrong: use the degree sign plus C or F in ordinary text, and follow the style rules for the publication or scientific context.
For more characters, browse all symbol collections or use the accent keyboard to compose text before copying it.