SymbolHub

Staff of Aesculapius (⚕)

The medical symbol ⚕ is the staff of Aesculapius, Unicode U+2695: a single snake wound around a rod. Press Copy to use it, and see below why it is not the same as the two-snake caduceus ☤.

Unicode
U+2695
HTML
⚕
Word
2695 Alt+X

How to type the staff of aesculapius (medical symbol) (⚕)

The quickest way is to press Copy above and paste. To type ⚕ yourself, use the method for your device below.

Windows

  1. In Word or Outlook, type 2695 and press Alt + X. Alt + X converts the hex code before the cursor into the character, and back again.
  2. Press Win + . to open the emoji panel, then search for “medical”.

Mac

  1. Press Control + Command + Space to open the Character Viewer, search for medical and double-click it.
  2. With the Unicode Hex Input keyboard enabled (System Settings → Keyboard → Input Sources), hold Option and type 2695.

Linux & ChromeOS

  1. Press Ctrl + Shift + U, type 2695, then press Enter or Space. Works in GTK and IBus apps (GNOME, Firefox, Chrome, LibreOffice) and on ChromeOS.

iPhone & iPad

  1. Open the emoji keyboard and search for “medical” to insert ⚕️, the colour emoji. For the plain text ⚕, copy it from this page.
  2. Copy ⚕ from this page, then go to Settings → General → Keyboard → Text Replacement and add it with a shortcut such as ;staf. The shortcut then turns into the symbol as you type, in every app.

Android

  1. In Gboard, tap the emoji key and search for “medical” to insert ⚕️. For the plain text ⚕, copy it from this page.
  2. Copy ⚕ here, then open Gboard settings → Dictionary → Personal dictionary and add it with a shortcut.

Microsoft Word

  1. Type 2695, then press Alt + X.
  2. Insert → Symbol → More Symbols. Set “from” to Unicode (hex), type 2695 in “Character code” and click Insert.

Google Docs

  1. Insert → Special characters, then search for “medical” or draw it in the box.

Excel & Google Sheets

  1. Enter =UNICHAR(9877) in a cell. It works in Excel 2013 and later and in Google Sheets.

HTML

  1. Write ⚕ or ⚕ in your HTML.

What does ⚕ mean?

The staff of Aesculapius, also called the rod of Asclepius, belongs to the Greek god of healing. It has one snake and no wings, and it is the correct symbol for medicine: the World Health Organization, most medical associations and the Star of Life on ambulances all use it.

It is often confused with the caduceus ☤, the winged staff with two snakes carried by Hermes, which stood for commerce and messengers. The mix-up became common after the US Army Medical Corps adopted the caduceus in 1902, and many American companies still use it. If you want the medical meaning, choose ⚕.

Common uses

  • Clinic, pharmacy and health-service signage in text
  • Medical profiles and credentials: Dr. Lee ⚕

Staff of Aesculapius (Medical Symbol) codes for HTML, CSS and programming

Every code below produces ⚕. Use the HTML entity in web pages, the CSS escape in content, and the escape sequence in source code.

Unicode code pointU+2695
HTML decimal⚕
HTML hex⚕
CSS contentcontent: "\2695";
JavaScript"\u2695"
Python"\u2695"
Python (by name)"\N{STAFF OF AESCULAPIUS}"
Java / C#"\u2695"
UTF-8 bytesE2 9A 95
UTF-162695
URL encoded%E2%9A%95

⚕ vs look-alike characters

These characters look similar to ⚕ but have a different meaning and code. Pasting the wrong one can break search, sorting and screen readers.

CharNameWhen to use it
Caduceus
U+2624		Caduceus, the two-snake winged staff of Hermes. Common in the US but historically a sign of trade.
Staff of Hermes
U+269A		Staff of Hermes, another form of the herald’s staff.
Heavy Greek Cross
U+271A		Heavy Greek cross, used for first aid and pharmacies.

Symbols similar to ⚕

Click to copy, or open a symbol for its codes. See the full zodiac symbols collection.

⚕ character properties

Official Unicode name
STAFF OF AESCULAPIUS
Also known as
medical symbol, rod of asclepius, snake medical symbol
Code point
U+2695
Unicode block
Miscellaneous Symbols (U+2600–U+26FF)
General category
Other symbol (So)
Added in
Unicode 4.1 (2005)
Plane
Basic Multilingual Plane (0)
Emoji
Has an emoji form: ⚕️ (add U+FE0F)

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between the caduceus and the staff of Aesculapius?

The staff of Aesculapius ⚕ has one snake and no wings and is the traditional symbol of medicine. The caduceus ☤ has two snakes and wings and belongs to Hermes, the god of commerce.

Is there an alt code for the staff of aesculapius (medical symbol)?

No. ⚕ is outside the Windows-1252 and code page 437 character sets, so no Alt + number code produces it. Copy it from this page, type 2695 then Alt + X in Word, or find it in Character Map.

How do I type the staff of aesculapius (medical symbol) on a Mac?

There is no single Option shortcut for ⚕ on the US layout. Press Control + Command + Space to open the Character Viewer, search for “medical” and double-click it, or copy it from this page.

What is the HTML code for the staff of aesculapius (medical symbol)?

⚕ has no named HTML entity. Use the numeric reference ⚕ or ⚕, or paste the character directly into a UTF-8 page.

What is the Unicode for the staff of aesculapius (medical symbol)?

⚕ is U+2695, officially named STAFF OF AESCULAPIUS, in the Miscellaneous Symbols block. It has been part of Unicode since version 4.1 (2005).