How to Use Symbols and Special Characters on Any Device

Stars, hearts, arrows, brackets, accented letters. Special characters turn up everywhere in profile names and bios, and the usual way people get them is by copying from a list. That works, but it's helpful to understand how to type them yourself, and why some behave unexpectedly.

What counts as a "special character"

Anything that isn't on your keyboard's normal layout. That includes:

• Typographic symbols: — – • … ©
• Decorative symbols: ✦ ✧ ★ ☆ ♡ ❀ ✿ † ✞
• Arrows and geometry: → ➳ ▸ ◆ ■
• Letters with accents or from other alphabets: é ñ ü ø å
• Currency symbols: € £ ¥ ₹
• Emoji, which are a separate family

They all belong to Unicode, the standard that gives each character a unique number (a code point). The star ✦ is U+2726, for instance. The system of numbers is the reason the same symbol can be pasted between phones, laptops and websites.

Copy and paste: the universal method

The simplest way on any device is copying from a trusted source. The cool symbols page lists symbols already placed around your name, and the generator has more. Tap, paste, done.

Typing them on a phone

iPhone. Long-press a letter to see accented versions (hold e for é, è, ê). Symbols like • and — are in the punctuation layer. For wider symbols, turn on the Emoji keyboard, which includes many pictographs; or create a text replacement in Settings → General → Keyboard → Text Replacement, such as typing ;star to produce ✦. It syncs across Apple devices.

Android. Long-press letters for accents. Gboard has a symbols layer with a second page (=\<). Samsung and other keyboards have similar layers. You can also add a personal dictionary shortcut in Settings → Languages → Keyboard → Personal dictionary, so typing a shortcut inserts a symbol.

Both. Another reliable trick is keeping a note with your favourite symbols and copying from it.

Typing them on a computer

Windows.

• Emoji panel: press Windows key + period (.) or Windows + semicolon (;). It includes symbols and kaomoji tabs.
• Alt codes: hold Alt and type a number on the numeric keypad. For example, Alt+0169 gives ©. Not all symbols have codes.
• Character Map: a built-in app that lists all characters in a font.

Mac.

• Character Viewer: press Control + Command + Space. Search by name (for example, "star") and double-click.
• Option key shortcuts: Option+G for ©, Option+2 for ™, and so on.

Linux. Press Ctrl+Shift+U, type the hexadecimal code point (for example, 2726), and press Enter in many apps.

Any computer. Search the symbol's name online ("black four pointed star") and copy it from a reference page.

Why symbols sometimes look different

Each device draws a symbol using its own fonts. Simple shapes like ★ and ♡ look nearly identical everywhere. Decorative ones can change shape or weight. And some characters have two forms: a plain text version and a colourful emoji version. The heart ♡ is the outline symbol; ❤️ is the emoji.

This is controlled by a hidden helper character called a variation selector. If you paste a symbol and it turns into a coloured emoji, or the other way round, that's why.

Look-alike characters: the trap

Unicode contains many characters that look the same but are different. The vertical bar alone appears as | (vertical line), │ and ┃ (box drawing), ｜ (fullwidth) and more. The Latin "a" and the Cyrillic "а" look identical but are different characters.

This matters in three situations:

1. Usernames. Platforms often reject or flag look-alikes, because they are used in impersonation.
2. Searching. A search for the plain version doesn't match the look-alike.
3. Copying. If you retype a symbol that looks identical, you may get a different one.

The practical rule: copy symbols directly instead of retyping them, and keep usernames plain.

Counting and limits

Many symbols are outside the basic range of Unicode and occupy more space. A bold mathematical letter is stored as two units in UTF-16, the encoding used by many apps. The word 𝐌𝐚𝐲𝐚 is four characters but eight units in UTF-16. Emoji can be worse: a family emoji like 👨‍👩‍👧 is five code points joined by invisible connectors and takes eight units.

If an app says your name is "too long" when it looks short, this is probably why. Remove emoji first, then simplify.

Where symbols are and aren't allowed

For game-specific details, see Free Fire, PUBG and BGMI.

Building a personal symbol set

Pick six to ten symbols you like and keep them in a note: two dividers (· and |), two decorations (✦ and ♡), a frame (【 】), and an arrow. Using the same few symbols across profiles gives your accounts a consistent look. Emoji combos for names covers the emoji side of the same idea.

A starter set worth saving

If you want a small, dependable collection, these are widely supported and look neat in names:

• Dividers: · • | / ∙ ⋆
• Sparkles: ✦ ✧ ★ ☆ ✩
• Hearts and flowers: ♡ ♥ ❀ ✿
• Crosses: † ‡ ✞
• Brackets: 【】 『』 ⟦⟧ 〈〉
• Arrows: → ➳ ▸ ⟶

Paste them into one note and you'll never have to look them up. Test each on your phone first; if one shows a box, delete it from the list.

Quick troubleshooting

• A box appears: the device lacks a font for it. Try a common symbol (see the boxes guide).
• A symbol turned into an emoji: add or remove the variation selector, or copy a different version.
• The symbol disappears after saving: the app strips it. Try a plainer alternative.
• The name is "too long": count by units, not characters.

With a short list of reliable symbols and a habit of testing in a notes app, you rarely need anything else.