Greek Small Letter Alpha
The greek small letter alpha (α) sits at code point U+03B1 in Unicode. It belongs to the math family and pastes as plain text, so it keeps working across documents, messages and web pages. Below you can copy it in one click and grab the exact HTML, CSS and JavaScript codes you need to reproduce it anywhere.
| Symbol | α | |
|---|---|---|
| Unicode | U+03B1 | |
| Name | Greek Small Letter Alpha | |
| HTML (named) | α | |
| HTML (decimal) | α | |
| HTML (hex) | α | |
| CSS content | \03B1 | |
| JavaScript / JSON | \u03B1 | |
| UTF-8 bytes | 0xCE 0xB1 | |
| UTF-16 units | 0x03B1 |
How do you type the greek small letter alpha on each platform?
| Where | How to type it |
|---|---|
| Any device | Click the α at the top of this page. It goes straight to your clipboard, and you paste it with Ctrl+V on Windows or Cmd+V on a Mac. This is the only method that behaves identically everywhere. |
| Windows | There is no short alt code for this character. Press Win and the full stop key to open the emoji and symbol panel, then use the symbols tab and search for greek small letter alpha. |
| macOS | Add Unicode Hex Input under Keyboard settings, switch to it, then hold Option and type 03B1. Without that input source, open the Character Viewer with Control+Command+Space and search for greek small letter alpha. |
| Linux and ChromeOS | Press Ctrl+Shift+U, type 03b1, then press Enter or the space bar. This works in GTK applications and with IBus. |
| Microsoft Word | Type 03B1 in the document, then press Alt and X together with the cursor immediately after the last digit. Word replaces the digits with α. |
| Google Docs | Insert, then Special characters, then paste U+03B1 or type greek small letter alpha in the search box. You can also draw the shape in the sketch pad on the right. |
| Excel and Google Sheets | Use the formula UNICHAR(945) in a cell. Copy the cell and paste it as a value if you want the character rather than the formula. |
| HTML | Write α, or the numeric reference α, or α. On a page served as UTF-8 the character itself also works. |
| CSS | Use content: "\03B1" inside a ::before or ::after rule. Terminate the escape with a space if the next character is also a hexadecimal digit. |
| JavaScript | The escape \u03B1 produces this character inside a string literal, and the same escape is valid in JSON. |
More detail per platform: Windows alt codes, special characters on a Mac, special characters in Word and HTML entities.
Frequently asked questions
How do I copy the greek small letter alpha symbol?
Click the α above or the copy button and it is placed on your clipboard. Paste it anywhere with Ctrl+V or Cmd+V. It is a real text character, so it works in documents, chats and code.
What is the Unicode code point for greek small letter alpha?
The greek small letter alpha has the Unicode code point U+03B1. In HTML you can write it as α or α, or with the named entity α.
Is the greek small letter alpha an emoji or a text character?
It is a plain Unicode text character, not an image or an emoji sticker. That means the α inherits the surrounding font, size and color wherever you paste it, and it works in places emoji often do not, such as usernames, file names and code.
Related symbols
Browse the full math symbols hub, or return to the searchable symbol grid.