One a quest to enter the number sign using macOS? Find out here where to find the hash key ( # ) on any Mac keyboard, and how to insert alternative number symbols (like the hash key emoji).
First, Your Hand Is a Sieve
Your hand is a squeezer, and it is a sieve.
With half a lemon or lime in one hand and the other forming a cup underneath, the mesh made of fingers will catch all the seeds—handily.
So, if life gives you hands, you can make lemonade—or the sign that looks like a sieve’s mesh, of course:
Where to Find the Hash Key ( # ) on a Mac Keyboard
Time needed: 1 minute
To insert the hash sign (pound or number key) ‘#’ using the keyboard on a Mac:
- Position the cursor where you want to insert the character ‘#’ (for a hashtag, for instance).
Hashtag emoji: Using the emoji panel or Character Viewer, you can also insert the hashtag emoji and variants of the number sign; see below.
Before numbers: Typically, the number sign is followed directly by the number (or, of course, the tag if you use it to introduce a tag like in Apple Reminders).
Example:#42reads as “number forty-two”.
Sharp: You can use the number sign to stand in for the symbol for a sharp musical note; see below for the symbol itself, though. - Press Shift 3.
Keyboard layouts: This is the key combination using the U.S.-English keyboard layout; see below for finding the hash sign on other keyboards.
The hash symbol is also useful for linking to a specific section on a page on the web, of course.
Find the Hash Key (#) on Your Keyboard Layout
To find out where the pound sign is on your current Mac keyboard:
- Open the macOS keyboard Viewer.
- Hold the Shift key.
- Look for the key labelled #.
No ‘#’: If you do not see the pound key, try holding down Option instead, Option Shift, or no modifier key at all.
Examples
Here are a few examples of inserting the pound sign with different keyboard layouts:
| Keyboard Layout | Hash Sign # |
|---|---|
| French | Shift @ |
| German | # |
| Italian | Option à |
| Kana | Option Shift あ |
| Spanish | Shift 3 |
Using Mac Character Viewer (Includes Hashtag Emoji)
Using Character Viewer, you can insert not only the pound sign but also its Unicode variants as well as the hashtag emoji:
- Position the text cursor where you want to insert the hash sign or hashtag emoji.
- Select Edit | Emoji & Symbols from the menu.
Mac keyboard shortcut: You can press 🌐︎ or Fn E to open the emoji panel or Character Viewer. - Enter
number signin the search field. - Double-click # (number sign), ﹟ (small number sign) or ＃ (broad number sign) to insert it.
Hashtag emoji: Double-click #️⃣ for the emoji version of the #⃣︎ character.
Similar-looking characters: You can also insertmusic sharp sign(♯), the classic telephone keypad’s square key (viewdata square, ⌗) as well as the mathematicalequal and parallelsign (⋕), e.g., for use with vectors).
Where to Find the Hash Key ( # ) on a Mac Keyboard: FAQ
Can I also copy and paste the pound characters?
Yes.
You can copy the various hash signs from the table below for pasting anywhere:
number sign # | |
small number sign ﹟ | |
full-width number sign ＃ | |
number sign emoji #️⃣ | |
number sign emoji (text version) #⃣︎ |
sharp sign ♯ | |
phone square key ⌗ | |
equal and parallel sign ⋕ |
Can I use the hash sign in HTML?
Yes.
In HTML, you can insert the various number signs using entities or, of course, entering them directly (in UTF-8-encoded pages):
- # for a needlessly verbose and redundant # (number sign)
- ﹟ for ﹟ (small number sign)
- ＃ for ＃ (full-with number sign)
- #⃣️ for #⃣️ (number sign emoji) and
- #⃣︎ for #⃣︎ (number sign emoji text version).
(Where to find the hash key (#) on a Mac keyboard tested with macOS Sonoma 14.2–14.5; first published February 2024, last updated July 2024)