Pi Symbol (π)
The pi symbol π is Unicode U+03C0, the constant 3.14159… and the Greek letter p. Press Copy to put it on your clipboard, or type it with Alt + 227 on Windows or Option + P on a Mac.
- Unicode
U+03C0- HTML
π- Windows
Alt + 227- Mac
Option + P
How to type the pi symbol (π)
The quickest way is to press Copy above and paste. To type π yourself, use the method for your device below. On a Mac it is Option + P.
Windows
- Hold Alt and type 227 on the numeric keypad. This older code (from code page 437) works in Notepad, Word and most desktop apps.
- In Word or Outlook, type 03C0 and press Alt + X. Alt + X converts the hex code before the cursor into the character, and back again.
- Press Win + R, type charmap and press Enter. Tick “Advanced view”, search for Greek Small Letter Pi, then Select and Copy. Character Map is built into every version of Windows.
Mac
- Press Option+P. On the standard US and US-International layouts.
- Press Control + Command + Space to open the Character Viewer, search for pi and double-click it.
Linux & ChromeOS
- Press Ctrl + Shift + U, type 3c0, then press Enter or Space. Works in GTK and IBus apps (GNOME, Firefox, Chrome, LibreOffice) and on ChromeOS.
iPhone & iPad
- Copy π from this page, then go to Settings → General → Keyboard → Text Replacement and add it with a shortcut such as ;pi. The shortcut then turns into the symbol as you type, in every app.
Android
- In Gboard, tap ?123, then =\<. π is on that page.
- Copy π here, then open Gboard settings → Dictionary → Personal dictionary and add it with a shortcut.
Microsoft Word
- Type 03C0, then press Alt + X.
- Insert → Symbol → More Symbols. Set “from” to Unicode (hex), type 03C0 in “Character code” and click Insert.
- On a Mac, Option+P works in Word too.
Google Docs
- Insert → Special characters, then search for “pi” or draw it in the box.
Excel & Google Sheets
- Enter
=UNICHAR(960)in a cell. It works in Excel 2013 and later and in Google Sheets.
HTML
- Write
πorπin your HTML.
What does π mean?
π is the ratio of any circle’s circumference to its diameter, about 3.14159265. It is irrational, so its decimal digits never end or repeat. The Welsh mathematician William Jones first used the letter for the constant in 1706, and Leonhard Euler’s adoption of it in the 1730s made it standard.
The symbol is the lowercase Greek letter pi, chosen as the first letter of periphereia, “circumference”. The same character is used when you write Greek text, so π in a formula and π in a Greek word are identical code points. The capital Π and the product sign ∏ are different characters with different jobs.
In print π is set upright, not italic, because it is a fixed constant rather than a variable. LaTeX’s \pi gives the italic maths style by default; many publishers ask for the upright form.
Common uses
- Circle area and circumference: A = πr², C = 2πr
- Angles in radians: 180° = π rad
- Probability and statistics formulas, such as the normal distribution
- Pi Day on 14 March (3/14 in US date order)
Pi Symbol codes for HTML, CSS and programming
Every code below produces π. Use the HTML entity in web pages, the CSS escape in content, and the escape sequence in source code.
| Unicode code point | U+03C0 | |
|---|---|---|
| HTML entity (named) | π | |
| HTML decimal | π | |
| HTML hex | π | |
| CSS content | content: "\3C0"; | |
| JavaScript | "\u03C0" | |
| Python | "\u03C0" | |
| Python (by name) | "\N{GREEK SMALL LETTER PI}" | |
| Java / C# | "\u03C0" | |
| LaTeX | \pi | |
| UTF-8 bytes | CF 80 | |
| UTF-16 | 03C0 | |
| URL encoded | %CF%80 | |
| Alt code (CP437) | Alt + 227 | |
| Mac shortcut | Option + P |
π vs look-alike characters
These characters look similar to π but have a different meaning and code. Pasting the wrong one can break search, sorting and screen readers.
| Char | Name | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
Greek capital PiU+03A0 | Greek capital letter Pi. Used for Greek text and some physics quantities, not for 3.14. | |
N-Ary ProductU+220F | N-ary product sign, the “capital pi” of product notation. It is larger and belongs in formulas. | |
Greek Pi SymbolU+03D6 | Pi symbol (variant pi), a curly form used in a few physics formulas. | |
Double-Struck Small PiU+213C | Double-struck small pi, a rare mathematical alphabet letter. |
Symbols similar to π
Click to copy, or open a symbol for its codes. See the full greek letters collection.
- N-Ary Product Details
- Greek Alpha Details
- Greek Beta Details
- Greek Gamma Details
- Greek Epsilon Details
- Greek Zeta Details
- Greek Eta Details
- Greek Theta Details
- Greek Iota Details
- Greek Kappa Details
- Greek Lamda Details
- Greek Mu Details
- Greek Nu Details
- Greek Xi Details
- Greek Omicron Details
- Greek Rho Details
- Greek Tau Details
π character properties
- Official Unicode name
- GREEK SMALL LETTER PI
- Also known as
- pi, pi sign, greek letter pi, π symbol
- Code point
- U+03C0
- Unicode block
- Greek and Coptic (U+0370–U+03FF)
- General category
- Lowercase letter (Ll)
- Added in
- Unicode 1.1 (1993)
- Plane
- Basic Multilingual Plane (0)
- Emoji
- No, it is a text symbol
Frequently asked questions
What is the value of pi?
π is approximately 3.14159265358979. For everyday sums 3.14 or 22/7 is close enough; 22/7 overshoots the true value by about 0.04%.
Why is pi represented by the Greek letter π?
It is the first letter of the Greek word for periphery or circumference. William Jones used it in 1706, and Euler’s widely read works made it the standard notation.
How do I write pi in Excel?
Use the function =PI(), which returns 3.14159265358979. To show the letter itself in a cell, enter =UNICHAR(960).
What is the alt code for the pi symbol?
On Windows, hold Alt and type 227 on the numeric keypad to get π. On a laptop without a keypad, copy it from this page or use 03C0 then Alt + X in Word.
How do I type the pi symbol on a Mac?
Press Option + P. It works in every app on the US keyboard layout. You can also open the Character Viewer with Control + Command + Space and search for it.
What is the HTML code for the pi symbol?
Use the named entity π or the numeric reference π (hex π). All three display π in every browser.
What is the Unicode for the pi symbol?
π is U+03C0, officially named GREEK SMALL LETTER PI, in the Greek and Coptic block. It has been part of Unicode since version 1.1 (1993).