How to Type Greek Letters on Any Device

There are five reliable ways to enter Greek letters: built-in OS keyboard layouts, character pickers, Alt codes on Windows, Option key combinations on macOS, and HTML or LaTeX in technical documents. Pick the method that matches how often you need Greek characters — switch keyboards for daily use, Alt codes for occasional symbols, copy-paste for one-offs.

If you just need to insert a letter once, the fastest route is our copy-paste tool. For frequent use in math or scientific writing, see the LaTeX commands or HTML entities reference.

Windows Alt Codes (Numeric Keypad Required)

Hold Alt and type the code on the numeric keypad — not the row of number keys above the letters. Release Alt to insert the character. These codes work in most Windows applications, including Word, browsers, and email clients.

Two ranges exist: the older OEM/IBM codes (3-digit) produce a partial set in any font, while Alt+<hex Unicode> works only in apps that enable the Windows Unicode input method (Alt+X in Word, for example, converts the typed code to the character).

No numeric keypad? On laptops without a dedicated keypad, hold Fn with the embedded numpad keys (often the m, j, k, l block), or use the Windows Character Map (charmap.exe) and copy from there. The full per-letter list lives on our complete typing guide.

macOS Option Key Combinations

macOS doesn't have Alt codes, but it includes a Greek input source. Once enabled, each Latin key on the U.S. keyboard maps directly to its Greek counterpart (a→α, b→β, and so on), with a few exceptions for sounds Greek doesn't share with English.

1. Open System Settings → Keyboard → Text Input → Input Sources → Edit.
2. Click the + button, choose Greek, and pick Greek or Greek – Polytonic (the polytonic version supports accents and breathing marks for Ancient Greek).
3. Switch layouts with Control+Space (or the flag icon in the menu bar).

For occasional Greek letters without switching keyboards, use the macOS Character Viewer: Control+Command+Space, then search "alpha", "beta", etc.

Linux: Greek Layout and Compose Key

Most Linux desktops include a Greek keyboard out of the box. Add it via Settings → Keyboard → Input Sources in GNOME or System Settings → Keyboard → Layouts in KDE. Toggle with Super+Space.

Power users can configure a Compose key (often Right Alt or Caps Lock). Press the Compose key, then *, then a Latin letter to produce the matching Greek letter — for example, Compose * a produces α. This works system-wide without switching layouts.

Mobile (iOS and Android)

Both platforms ship with a Greek keyboard you can add and switch to with the globe icon:

• iOS: Settings → General → Keyboard → Keyboards → Add New Keyboard → Greek.
• Android (Gboard): Settings → System → Languages & input → On-screen keyboard → Gboard → Languages → Add keyboard → Greek.

Tip: on iOS, long-pressing a Latin letter in some apps reveals related characters, but Greek isn't usually among them — the dedicated Greek keyboard is more reliable.

HTML Entities for Web Pages

In HTML, you can write Greek letters with either named entities (α) or numeric character references in decimal (α) or hexadecimal (α). All three render as α. Numeric references are safer because every browser supports them, even for less common characters. See the full HTML entity table for every letter.

LaTeX for Math and Scientific Writing

In LaTeX math mode ($...$ or \(...\)), use commands like \alpha, \beta, \Gamma (capitalized for uppercase). The full command reference is on our LaTeX Greek letters page.