How to Type Pilcrow or Paragraph Symbol in Word & Excel (Windows/ Mac)?

1. If your computer runs Windows, hold down the “alt” key and type “20” to get the paragraph (¶) symbol. 
2. If you have a Mac computer, and you want to get the paragraph (¶) symbol, hit the “option” and “6” keys at the same time. 
3. If you use Linux, you can use one of the three methods below.
4. For the paragraph (¶) symbol: 

• Hold down the “Ctrl” and “Shift” keys at the same time. Type “U” and then 00b6. Release “Ctrl” and “Shift” at the same time. 
• Hold down the “Ctrl,” “Shift,” and “U” keys all at the same time. Type 00b6. Release “Ctrl,” “Shift,” and “U” at the same time.
• Type “Ctrl” and “Shift” and “U,” then type 00b6. Hit “Enter.”

How to Type Pilcrow and Paragraph Symbol in Word/Excel (Windows and Mac)?

In an ideal world, you don’t need to know keyboard shortcuts. You only need to open the special character tool of the software you’re using, scroll down hundreds of symbols, find the one character you’re searching for, and voila! You’re done. But you don’t live in an ideal world. You live in a world where being able to type out special characters in 1-2 seconds — as opposed to spending 10+ seconds looking for the same characters every time you need them) — makes a huge difference in your productivity, in your ability to meet deadlines, and even your ability to move up the career ladder.

For example, if you work in a profession that requires you to use many citations (like academia and law), you often have to use the paragraph (¶) symbol, among other special characters. Since you have to turn in hundreds of pages of papers under tight deadlines, you can’t afford to waste time scrolling through the special character tool to use characters that show up at least once on every page in your writing. That’s why you learn keyboard shortcuts. You don’t need to know all the keyboard shortcuts, of course – just the ones that show up most often in your work line. And, if you want to know the keyboard shortcuts for the paragraph and/or pilcrow symbol (¶), you’ve come to the right place.

Keep in mind that keyboard shortcuts vary depending on the operating system or software you’re using, so double check your software before using the keyboard shortcuts for the paragraph and/or pilcrow symbol (¶) below.

How to type paragraph or pilcrow symbol (¶) on Windows and Google using keyboard shortcuts:

Image by tookapic from Pixabay

For Windows and Google, the keyboard shortcuts are mostly the same. 

• If you want to type out the paragraph or pilcrow (¶) symbol on Windows/Google, hold down the “Alt” key, and type “20” (without quotation marks). Make sure your mouse pointer is where you want the symbol to be placed. Once you’re done typing, don’t forget to release the “Alt” key.
• Alternatively, you can hold down the “alt” key and type “0182” (again, without quotation marks) using your keyboard’s numeric keypad. In this case, make sure the “Num Lock” key is active, and make sure your mouse pointer is where you want the symbol to be placed. Again, once you’re done typing, don’t forget to release the “Alt” key. 
• One keyboard shortcut for the paragraph or pilcrow symbol (¶) on Windows works only on Word. Put your mouse pointer where you want the symbol to be placed, type “00B6” (without quotation marks), then hold “Alt” + “X” down simultaneously. Release the keys once the symbol appears. 
• For Excel, you can use both the “Alt + 20” method and the “Alt + 0182” method (with the num lock key active). The “00B6” + “Alt + X” method won’t work for Excel.
• How to type paragraph or pilcrow symbol (¶) on Word and Excel using the built-in special character tool:
• If you don’t want to use the keyboard shortcuts shown above, you can also do the following.

For Word:

1. Click the “Insert” tab.
2. Click “Symbol.”
3. If you don’t see the paragraph or pilcrow symbol (¶) on the list of most frequently used symbols, click “More Symbols” or press “M” (without quotation marks).
4. Click the “Special Characters” tab, or press “P” (without quotation marks).
5. Scroll down until you see the paragraph or pilcrow symbol (¶), and click.
6. Click “Insert,” or press “I” (without quotation marks).
7. If you need to use the paragraph or pilcrow symbol (¶) again, it should show up in the most recently used symbols the next time you click “Insert” + “Symbol.”

For Excel:

1. Click the “Insert” tab.
2. Click “Symbols.”
3. Click “Symbol.”
4. Click the “Special Characters” tab, or press “P” (without quotation marks).
5. Scroll down until you see the paragraph or pilcrow symbol (¶), and click.
6. Click “Insert,” or press “I” (without quotation marks).

How to type paragraph or pilcrow symbol (¶) on Mac:

Image by Alexander Gounder from Pixabay

• If you have a Mac computer, and you want to get the paragraph (¶) symbol, hit the “option” and “7” keys at the same time. This option should work for both Word and Excel.
• How to type paragraph or pilcrow symbol (¶) on Linux:
• If you use Linux, you can use one of the three methods below.
• To type out the paragraph or pilcrow (¶) symbol on Linux:

• Hold down the “Ctrl” and “Shift” keys at the same time. Type “U” and then 00b6. Release “Ctrl” and “Shift” at the same time. 
• Hold down the “Ctrl,” “Shift,” and “U” keys all at the same time. Type 00b6. Release “Ctrl,” “Shift,” and “U” at the same time.
• Type “Ctrl” and “Shift” and “U,” then type 00b6. Hit “Enter.”

The above shortcuts can also work for other open-source platforms. For example, if you’re using Inkscape, LibreOffice.org, or OpenOffice.org, the second method will work, but not the other two. If you’re using GTK, the third method will work, but not the other two.  There you have it: A comprehensive guide to keyboard shortcuts for the paragraph or pilcrow (¶) for Word and Excel on the most common platforms. If you have any questions or comments about this piece, please sound off in the comments below.

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