SymbolHub

Warning Sign (⚠)

The warning sign ⚠ is Unicode U+26A0, the exclamation mark in a triangle. Press Copy to put it on your clipboard.

Unicode
U+26A0
HTML
⚠
Word
26A0 Alt+X

How to type the warning sign (⚠)

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 26A0 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 “warning”.

Mac

  1. Press Control + Command + Space to open the Character Viewer, search for warning and double-click it.
  2. With the Unicode Hex Input keyboard enabled (System Settings → Keyboard → Input Sources), hold Option and type 26A0.

Linux & ChromeOS

  1. Press Ctrl + Shift + U, type 26a0, 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 “warning” 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 ;warn. The shortcut then turns into the symbol as you type, in every app.

Android

  1. In Gboard, tap the emoji key and search for “warning” 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 26A0, then press Alt + X.
  2. Insert → Symbol → More Symbols. Set “from” to Unicode (hex), type 26A0 in “Character code” and click Insert.

Google Docs

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

Excel & Google Sheets

  1. Enter =UNICHAR(9888) in a cell. It works in Excel 2013 and later and in Google Sheets.

HTML

  1. Write ⚠ or ⚠ in your HTML.

What does ⚠ mean?

⚠ is the general warning sign: an exclamation mark inside a triangle. On safety signs it matches the ISO 7010 general warning sign (W001), usually printed in black on yellow, and it means “take care, there is a hazard here”. In software it marks warnings that are less serious than errors, and in documents it draws attention to a caution.

The plain character follows your text colour. With the emoji selector it becomes ⚠️, a yellow triangle on most phones. For errors, a red ❌ or ⛔ is more conventional; for tips and notes, a neutral mark such as ℹ is kinder to readers than a warning triangle.

Common uses

  • Warnings in documentation: ⚠ Back up your files first.
  • Status messages and logs: ⚠ 3 warnings, 0 errors
  • Social posts flagging spoilers or sensitive content

Warning Sign 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+26A0
HTML decimal⚠
HTML hex⚠
CSS contentcontent: "\26A0";
JavaScript"\u26A0"
Python"\u26A0"
Python (by name)"\N{WARNING SIGN}"
Java / C#"\u26A0"
UTF-8 bytesE2 9A A0
UTF-1626A0
URL encoded%E2%9A%A0

⚠ 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
Heavy Exclamation Mark Symbol
U+2757		Heavy exclamation mark emoji, for emphasis without the triangle.
No Entry
U+26D4		No entry sign, used for “stop” or “not allowed”.
No Entry
U+1F6AB		Prohibited sign, the circle with a slash.
Radioactive
U+2622		Radioactive sign, a specific hazard rather than a general warning.

Symbols similar to ⚠

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

⚠ character properties

Official Unicode name
WARNING SIGN
Also known as
warning symbol, caution sign, exclamation triangle, alert symbol
Code point
U+26A0
Unicode block
Miscellaneous Symbols (U+2600–U+26FF)
General category
Other symbol (So)
Added in
Unicode 4.0 (2003)
Plane
Basic Multilingual Plane (0)
Emoji
Has an emoji form: ⚠️ (add U+FE0F)

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between ⚠ and ⚠️?

⚠ (U+26A0) is the text form and uses your font colour. ⚠️ adds the emoji selector U+FE0F and shows as a yellow warning emoji on most devices.

How do I add a warning symbol in Word?

Type 26A0 and press Alt + X to get ⚠. You can also use Insert → Icons in Microsoft 365 for a graphic version.

Is there an alt code for the warning sign?

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 26A0 then Alt + X in Word, or find it in Character Map.

How do I type the warning sign 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 “warning” and double-click it, or copy it from this page.

What is the HTML code for the warning sign?

⚠ 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 warning sign?

⚠ is U+26A0, officially named WARNING SIGN, in the Miscellaneous Symbols block. It has been part of Unicode since version 4.0 (2003).