How to Type the Squared Symbol (²) on Any Keyboard or Phone

Squared symbol shortcuts at a glance

The squared sign ² is a single Unicode character named “superscript two” (U+00B2). You use it for square units such as m² and ft², and for simple powers such as x² or πr². Because it is one character rather than a styled 2, it keeps its raised position when you paste it into an email, a form field, a spreadsheet label, or a social post.

Device or app	Fastest reliable method
Windows with a numeric keypad	Hold Alt, type 0178 on the keypad, release Alt
Windows laptop without a keypad	Windows + . → Symbols, Character Map, or copy ²
Mac	Control + Command + Space, search “superscript”
Microsoft Word for Windows	Type 00B2, then press Alt + X
Google Docs	Insert → Symbols → Special characters, search “superscript”
Excel or Google Sheets	=UNICHAR(178) for a label; =A2^2 to calculate
iPhone	Create a text replacement once, then type your shortcut
Android (Gboard)	Tap ?123, touch and hold 2, choose ²
Chromebook	Ctrl + Shift + U, type 00b2, press Enter
HTML	² or the literal ² in a UTF-8 page

First decide: the ² character or superscript formatting?

Many guides skip this step, and it explains most “my squared sign disappeared” problems. There are two different ways to make a raised 2:

• The ² character is a real Unicode symbol. It behaves like any other letter or digit: it copies, pastes, and stays raised in plain-text places such as Gmail subject lines, website forms, chat apps, file names, and spreadsheet text.
• Superscript formatting raises ordinary text inside a rich-text editor such as Word, Google Docs, or Pages. The underlying text is still a normal 2, so pasting it somewhere that discards formatting leaves you with “m2.” Formatting can raise anything, though, including x¹⁰, 2ⁿ⁺¹, or an entire expression.

What you are writing	Better choice
Room or property size in a listing, form, or message	The ² character
A simple power in a sentence, such as x² or πr²	The ² character
Exponents above 3, letters, or longer powers in a document	Superscript formatting
A calculation in a spreadsheet, calculator, or code	The ^ or ** operator, not ²
Fractions, roots, or multi-line formulas	An equation editor or LaTeX

One more detail matters for data. Unicode defines ² as a compatibility form of the digit 2, so software that applies compatibility normalization (NFKC) converts “m²” to “m2.” That is usually harmless in search, but it means ² should not be the only thing carrying a mathematical meaning in stored data.

Type ² on Windows

Click where the symbol should go, turn on Num Lock, hold the Alt key, type 0178 on the numeric keypad, and release Alt. Use the keypad, not the number row above the letters; classic Alt codes listen for keypad input. The cubed sign works the same way with Alt + 0179.

You may also see Alt + 253 recommended. That shorter code comes from the old DOS code page and can produce ² too, but the result depends on the program. The leading-zero version is the one worth memorizing. Our Windows Alt codes guide explains why the two systems differ.

On a laptop without a numeric keypad

• Press Windows + . to open the emoji panel, select the Symbols section, and browse for the raised digits.
• Open Character Map from the Start menu, tick Advanced view, type “superscript” in Search for, then select ² and choose Copy.
• Use the copy button at the top of this page, or the symbol finder, and paste the character.

In Word for Windows, Ctrl + Shift + + (the = key on a U.S. keyboard) toggles superscript formatting if you would rather raise an ordinary 2.

Type ² on a Mac

There is no built-in Option-key shortcut for ² on the U.S. layout. Several websites claim that Option + 2 works, but on a U.S. Mac keyboard that combination types the trademark sign ™. Use one of these instead.

Character Viewer (no setup). Press Control + Command + Space, or Fn/Globe + E, type “superscript” in the search field, and double-click superscript two. Add it to Favorites if you use it often, so it is one click away next time.

Text replacement (best for frequent use). Open System Settings → Keyboard → Text Replacements and click +. Enter a short code such as sq2 under Replace and paste ² under With. From then on, typing sq2 in apps that support macOS text replacements inserts ².

Unicode Hex Input (for people who know codes). In System Settings → Keyboard, edit your input sources and add Unicode Hex Input. While it is the active input source, hold Option and type 00B2 to insert ². Switch back to your normal layout when you are done.

Superscript formatting. In Pages, select a normal 2 and press Control + Shift + Command + +. In Word for Mac, use the superscript button (x²) on the Home tab.

Type squared on iPhone

Apple’s keyboard does not include ² among the alternates on the 2 key, so the dependable approach is a one-time text replacement:

1. Copy ² from the top of this page.
2. Open Settings → General → Keyboard → Text Replacement, or touch and hold the globe or emoji key on the keyboard and tap Keyboard Settings → Text Replacement.
3. Tap +, paste ² into Phrase, and type a shortcut such as sq2 into Shortcut.
4. Tap Save. Typing sq2 followed by a space now produces ².

Repeat with ³ and a shortcut like cu3 if you need cubed values. Choose a shortcut made of letters rather than ^2: you may genuinely need to type ^2 in a calculator or spreadsheet app, and a replacement would get in the way.

Type squared on Android

On Gboard, tap ?123 to open the numbers layout, then touch and hold 2 and slide to ². The same menu also lists fractions such as ⅔. Holding 3 offers ³, and holding 1 offers ¹.

Samsung Keyboard and other keyboard apps arrange their symbol pages differently. If yours does not offer ², copy it once and save it as a personal dictionary or text shortcut in that keyboard’s settings.

Squared in Word, Google Docs, and Excel

Microsoft Word

In Word for Windows, type 00B2 and immediately press Alt + X; Word converts the code to ². If the code follows a letter or number without a space, select just the four characters first so Word converts the right sequence. You can also choose Insert → Symbol → More Symbols and pick ² from the Latin-1 Supplement subset.

For exponents larger than 3, select the digits and press Ctrl + Shift + + to apply superscript formatting. For anything with fractions or roots, use Insert → Equation.

Google Docs

Choose Insert → Symbols → Special characters and search for “superscript,” or draw a small 2 in the drawing box. To format a normal 2 as superscript, select it and press Ctrl + . on Windows and ChromeOS or ⌘ + . on a Mac.

Excel and Google Sheets

Spreadsheets need extra care, because a typed ² is text, not math:

• To calculate a square, use =A2^2 or =POWER(A2,2). A cell containing 5² will not equal 25.
• To build a label, use =UNICHAR(178), for example ="Area (m"&UNICHAR(178)&")". You can also type Alt + 0178 directly into a header cell on Windows.
• To show units on numbers, apply a custom number format such as 0.00" m²" (in Excel, Format Cells → Number → Custom; in Google Sheets, Format → Number → Custom number format). The cell displays “42.50 m²” but still holds the number 42.5, so SUM and charts keep working.

Excel’s Format Cells → Font → Superscript option works on selected characters of text, not on numeric values. That is why the custom number format is the better choice for measurements.

Type ² on a Chromebook

Press Ctrl + Shift + U, type 00b2, and press Space or Enter. An underlined “u” appears while you enter the code. The same method gives ³ with 00b3. In Google Docs on a Chromebook, Ctrl + . applies superscript formatting instead.

Squared in HTML and code

On a UTF-8 web page you can type ² directly, or use the named reference ² (numeric forms: ² or ²). Use the <sup> element instead when the exponent is longer than one digit or should be marked up as superscript text, as in x<sup>10</sup>.

In programming languages, ² is not an operator. Use x ** 2 in Python and JavaScript, Math.pow(x, 2) where needed, or the language’s own power function. Converting the character itself to a number fails in many languages; in Python, int("²") raises a ValueError.

Cubed and other superscript numbers

Only ¹, ², and ³ were part of the old Latin-1 character set, which is why they are the only superscript digits with classic Windows Alt codes and named HTML references. The rest live in Unicode’s Superscripts and Subscripts block.

Character	Name	Unicode	Windows Alt code	HTML
¹	Superscript one	U+00B9	Alt + 0185	¹
²	Superscript two	U+00B2	Alt + 0178	²
³	Superscript three	U+00B3	Alt + 0179	³
⁰	Superscript zero	U+2070	None	⁰
⁴–⁹	Superscript four–nine	U+2074–U+2079	None	⁴–⁹
⁻	Superscript minus	U+207B	None	⁻
ⁿ	Superscript n	U+207F	None	ⁿ

In Word for Windows, type the four characters after “U+” and press Alt + X: 2074 becomes ⁴, 207B becomes ⁻. Stringing these characters together works for short powers such as 10⁶ or x⁻¹. For anything longer, superscript formatting or an equation editor is easier to type and easier to read.

Writing square units: m², ft², km²

Attach ² directly to the unit with no space: m², cm², km², ft², in². Leave a normal space between the number and the unit, as in 25 m². In plain-text systems that cannot display ², “sq m” and “sq ft” are clear alternatives, and m^2 is common in code and technical notes.

Avoid mixing styles in one document. A property listing that says “1,200 sq ft” in one place and “1,200 ft²” in another looks careless, even though both are correct.

Troubleshooting

Alt + 0178 types nothing or the wrong character

Confirm Num Lock is on, use the numeric keypad, and include the leading zero. Some apps, remote desktops, and games intercept Alt; paste the character or use Character Map instead.

The ² turned into a normal 2 after pasting

You copied superscript formatting, not the ² character. Paste the real character from this page, or re-enter it with one of the character methods above.

The ² shows as a box or question mark

The font lacks the glyph, or the file is not saved as UTF-8. Switch to a common system font and check the file or database encoding.

My iPhone or Mac replacement doesn’t fire

Type the shortcut and then a space or punctuation mark. Check the spelling of the shortcut in Text Replacement settings, and remember that some third-party apps ignore system text replacements.

References and compatibility

These references document the input methods above. Shortcuts vary by keyboard layout, app, and version; where official documentation does not cover a method, the reference noted is a third-party source.

• Microsoft: format text as superscript or subscript in Word
• Microsoft: insert ASCII or Unicode character codes in Word
• Microsoft: UNICHAR function and number format guidelines
• Apple: Mac keyboard shortcuts and use emoji and symbols on Mac
• Apple: replace text and punctuation on Mac and set up text replacements on iPhone
• Apple Pages: raise and lower characters
• Google Docs: keyboard shortcuts and insert special characters
• Unicode: character properties for U+00B2
• WHATWG HTML: named character references
• Third-party: 9to5Google on Unicode input for Chromebooks and Make Tech Easier on Gboard fractions and superscripts