Make your texts prettier to look at and easier to read. You can separate numbers from units and words that belong together without running the risk of a line or page break separating them. Find out here how to enter a non-breaking space on Windows.
First, a Shogun Sends Chinaware to China
A tea bowl had been broken. When the cup returned, shogun Ashikaga Yoshimasa found it functional and repaired all right—with unsightly metal strips all around.
Japanese craftsmen went to work and, legend has it, came up with a way to fix broken pottery that is functionally restorative and beautifully enriching. Surely, you’ve heard of kintsugi, which turns the empty space in cracks into artful expressions of philosophy with lacquer and gold.
Now, how about not letting the space between words break when a line or page ends?
How to Enter a Non-Breaking Space on Windows
Using Word? How to Enter a Non-Breaking Space in Word
On a Mac? How to Insert a Non-breaking Space on a Mac
Using Character Map (Universal and a Bit Cumbersome)
Time needed: 1 minute
To insert a nonbreaking space character anywhere on Windows using Character Map:
- Open Character Map.
Here’s how: Press Windows to open the Start menu and start typing
character map, then click Character Map in search results. - Select Arial under Font :.
Other fonts: You can select other fonts as well, of course, provided the font includes the non-breaking space Unicode character (as Lucida Sans does, for example).
- Check Advanced view.
- Now type
no-breakunder Search for :. - Double-click the U+00A0: No-Break Space character.
- Click Copy under Characters to copy:.
- Now paste the nonbreaking space character where you want to use it.
Using the Windows Non-breaking Space Alt Code (Requires Number Keypad)
To input a non-breaking space using the number keypad and a Windows Alt code:
- Put the text cursor where you want to insert the non-breaking space.
- Turn on the numeric keypad using the NumLock key.
- Press and hold the Alt key.
- Now press 0 1 6 0 on the number keypad.
- Release the Alt key.
Using the Hexadecimal Unicode Codepoint in WordPad (Interesting)
You can also create a non-breaking space (for copy and pasting perhaps) in Word or WordPad.
To input a no-break space using Unicode:
- Create a new document in Word or WordPad.
- Type
00A0. - Press Alt X immediately afterwards.
Word: This works in both WordPad and Word; Word for Windows also offers easier ways to insert non-breaking space.
Using No-Break Space Copy and Paste (Quick and Easy)
To paste non-breaking spaces, use the following buttons:
Non-breaking space | |
Narrow non-breaking space |
How to Enter a Non-Breaking Space on Windows: FAQ
Can I enter a non-breaking space using the Emoji panel or on-screen keyboard?
No, the Windows emoji panel and the on-screen and touch keyboards do not include non-breaking spaces.
What is the difference between a non-breaking space and a narrow non-breaking space?
Their difference is the width.
- The no-break space is as wide as a regular space. Use it to separate words that you do not want to be separated with a line break or between certain punctuation (such as the section symbol) and its referent, for instance.
- The narrow no-break space is not actually a narrow version of the non-breaking space, but you can use it as such, e.g., to separate numbers from their units (21 °C) or to group numbers (184 000 000) without the risk of a line or page break.
(How to enter a non-breaking space tested with Windows 11 Version 22H2 and Windows 10; updated November 2023)