iPhone Keyboard Symbols: How to Type Special Characters on iOS
A complete guide to finding and typing hidden symbols, special characters, and accented letters on your iPhone.
The iPhone keyboard has more symbols hidden away than most people realise. From accented characters to currency signs and mathematical symbols, there are several ways to access special characters without installing any extra apps. This guide covers every method available on iOS.
The Long-Press Trick
The most useful hidden feature of the iPhone keyboard is the long-press. Press and hold certain keys to reveal alternative characters. This works on both letters and symbols.
Long-Press Examples for Letters
| Hold Key | Reveals |
|---|---|
| e | è é ê ë ē ė ę |
| a | à á â ä æ ã å ā |
| i | ì í î ï ī į |
| o | ò ó ô ö õ ø ō œ |
| u | ù ú û ü ū |
| n | ñ ń |
| s | ß ś š |
| c | ç ć č |
Slide your finger to the character you want, then release to type it.
Hidden Symbols on iPhone
The iPhone keyboard has three screens of characters. Most people only use the first two.
- Main keyboard — Letters (the default view)
- Tap 123 — Numbers and common symbols: @ # $ & * ( ) ' " - + = / ; : ! ?
- Tap #+= — More symbols: [ ] { } < > ` ~ | \ ^ % _ ¥ € £ ¢ ₩ and more
Many of the symbols on screen 2 and 3 also support long-press for additional variants:
| Hold Key | Reveals |
|---|---|
| 0 | ° (degree symbol) |
| - | – — • (en dash, em dash, bullet) |
| / | \ |
| $ | € £ ¥ ₩ ₹ ¢ |
| " | " " „ » « |
| ' | ' ' ` |
| % | ‰ |
| & | § |
| . | … (ellipsis) |
Quick Access Symbols
Some of the most commonly searched symbols are accessible through the long-press trick on the number and punctuation keyboards:
- Degree symbol ° — Long-press the 0 key
- Bullet point • — Long-press the - (hyphen) key
- Em dash — — Long-press the - (hyphen) key
- Curly quotes "" '' — Long-press the " or ' key
- Ellipsis … — Long-press the . (period) key
- Section sign § — Long-press the & key
The Emoji Keyboard
The iPhone has a built-in emoji keyboard with thousands of emoji. To enable and use it:
- Go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Keyboards
- Tap Add New Keyboard and select Emoji
- When typing, tap the smiley face icon (or globe icon) at the bottom-left of the keyboard
- Browse categories or use the search bar at the top to find specific emoji
Tip: In many apps, the iPhone will suggest relevant emoji as you type. For example, typing "heart" may show ❤️ as a suggestion above the keyboard.
Text Replacement Shortcuts
For symbols you use frequently, you can create custom shortcuts that automatically expand into any character or symbol:
- Open Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement
- Tap the + button in the top-right corner
- In the Phrase field, paste the symbol you want (e.g., ™)
- In the Shortcut field, type your trigger text (e.g.,
tmm) - Tap Save
Useful Text Replacement Ideas
| Shortcut | Phrase | Use Case |
|---|---|---|
| tmm | ™ | Trademark symbol |
| degg | ° | Degree symbol |
| rarr | → | Right arrow |
| chkk | ✓ | Check mark |
| hrt | ♥ | Heart symbol |
The Copy-Paste Method
For the thousands of symbols that are not available directly on the iPhone keyboard, the fastest method is copy and paste. Visit a symbol reference page, tap the symbol you need, and paste it into any app.
How to copy and paste symbols on iPhone:
- Visit a symbol page on GYPU (like Copy and Paste Symbols)
- Tap any symbol to copy it to your clipboard
- Open the app where you want to use the symbol
- Tap and hold in the text field, then select Paste
Browse our most popular symbol pages:
Quick Reference: 15 Most-Searched iPhone Symbols
Here are the symbols iPhone users search for most, along with how to type or access each one:
| Symbol | Name | How to Access on iPhone | Copy |
|---|---|---|---|
| ° | Degree | Long-press 0 | |
| • | Bullet | Long-press hyphen (-) | |
| — | Em dash | Long-press hyphen (-) | |
| – | En dash | Long-press hyphen (-) | |
| … | Ellipsis | Long-press period (.) | |
| € | Euro | Long-press $ (on 123 keyboard) | |
| £ | Pound | Long-press $ (on 123 keyboard) | |
| ¥ | Yen | Long-press $ (on 123 keyboard) | |
| © | Copyright | Copy-paste or Text Replacement | |
| ™ | Trademark | Copy-paste or Text Replacement | |
| ® | Registered | Copy-paste or Text Replacement | |
| § | Section | Long-press & (on #+= keyboard) | |
| ¶ | Paragraph | Copy-paste or Text Replacement | |
| √ | Square root | Copy-paste | |
| ∞ | Infinity | Copy-paste |