Home > Formulas > Text > CODE and CHAR Excel CODE and CHAR Function Examples Excel's CODE function can identify unknown characters, like a space character that isn't really a space. Use the CHAR function to add a line break in a formula, or to show special symbols. Newer functions UNICODE and UNICHAR functions are helpful too!

Video: CODE Function Examples

The CODE function returns a numeric code for the first character in a text string. For Windows, the returned code is from the ANSI character set, and for Macintosh, the code is from the Macintosh character set

Watch this short video for examples of how to use the CODE function. There are written steps below the video.

How Could You Use CODE?

The CODE function is in the Text Function category of Excel functions.

You can use the CODE function can help unravel mysteries in your data, such as:

• What hidden character is at the end of imported text?
• How can I type a special symbol in a cell?

CODE Syntax

The CODE function has the following arguments in its syntax:

• CODE(text)
  • text argument is the text string from which you want the first character’s code

CODE Traps

Results could be different if you switch to a different operating system.

• The codes for the ASCII character set (codes 32 to 126) are consistent, and most can be found on your keyboard.
• However, the characters for the higher numbers (129 to 254) may vary, as you can see in the comparison charts shown here: Differences between ANSI, ISO-8859-1 and MacRoman character sets
• For example, the ANSI code 189 is ½ and for the Macintosh it is O

Example 1: Get Hidden Character’s Code

When you copy text from a website, it might include hidden characters. The CODE function can be used to identify what those hidden characters are

For example, there is a text string in cell B3, and only “test” is visible — 4 characters. In cell C3, the LEN function shows that there are 5 characters in cell B3.

To identify the last character’s code, you can use the RIGHT function, to return the text value of the last character. Then, use the CODE function to return the code for that character.

• =CODE(RIGHT(B3,1))

In cell D3, the RIGHT/CODE formula shows that the last character has the code 160, which is a non-breaking space used on websites.

Example 2: Find a Symbol’s Code

To insert special characters in an Excel worksheet, you can use the Symbol command on the Ribbon’s Insert tab.

For example, you can insert a degree symbol ° or a copyright symbol ©.

After you insert a symbol, you can determine its code, by using the CODE function

• =IF(C3=””,””,CODE(RIGHT(C3,1)))

Use a symbol's Code Number

To show a specific symbol on a worksheet, you can use its CODE number to:

• insert it with a keyboard shortcut
• Show it with the CHAR function

Click the links, to go to those instructions.

Video: CHAR Function Examples

The CHAR function returns a specified character, for the number entered, based on the character set used by your computer. (For Windows, the ANSI character set, and for Macintosh, the Macintosh character set.)

Watch this short video for examples of how to use the CHAR function. There are written steps below the video

How Could You Use CHAR?

The CHAR function is another one of the Excel text functions, and is the inverse of the CODE function. When you give the CHAR function a number, it returns the corresponding character from the character set.

The CHAR function can help enter special symbols or specific characters, such as:

• Add a line break in a formula
• Find a specific letter in the alphabet
• List all the letters of the alphabet
• Create a reference table of character codes

CHAR Syntax

The CHAR function has the following arguments in its syntax:

• CHAR(number)
  • a number between 1 and 255, specifying the character you want returned. The character is from the character set used by your computer

CHAR Traps

Just like the CODE function, CHAR results could be different if you switch to a different operating system.

• Number must be between 1 and 255, or the formula will return a #VALUE! error.
• The codes for the ASCII character set (codes 32 to 126) are consistent, and most can be found on your keyboard.
• However, the characters for the higher numbers (129 to 254) may vary, as you can see in the comparison charts shown here: Differences between ANSI, ISO-8859-1 and MacRoman character sets

Example 1: Add a Line Break

To manually enter a line break in a cell, you can press Alt + Enter, but that doesn't work when you're entering a formula.

When combining text strings in a formula, you can use CHAR(10) — the ASCII value for the line break character.

• =C2 & CHAR(10) & C3

After you create the formula, format the cell with Wrap Text, to see the line break, instead of that strange symbol between the strings.

Example 2: Find Letter in Alphabet

Can you name the 19th letter of the alphabet?

With the CHAR function, you can quickly figure that out, without counting on your fingers!

The first step is to find the CODE for the first letter of the alphabet — A. You can type A in a cell, and refer to it, or type A as a text string in the function.

• =CODE(“A”)

or

• =CODE(B1)

After that, you can use the CHAR function to find any other letter in the alphabet, by adding 64 to the requested number.

• =CHAR(B5+64)

The formula's return value in cell C5 is the uppercase letter A.

Example 3: List Entire Alphabet

With Excel’s AutoFill feature, you can type two numbers, and quickly create an entire series of numbers.

Unfortunately, that doesn’t work if you type a couple of letters. However, you can use the CHAR function to create a list with the entire alphabet

Use the same technique of adding 64 to the number, to get a letter of the alphabet.

• =CHAR(A2 + 64)

Create a Custom List

If you want to enter the alphabet with the AutoFill feature, you can import your alphabet list into the Custom Lists feature.

• Copy the cells with the alphabet list, and paste in the row below, as Values

• Select the cells with the alphabet values (not the row with the CHAR formulas)

• Click the Office button on the Excel Ribbon, then click Excel Options (In Excel 2010, click Options)

• In the list of Categories, click Popular (In Excel 2010, click Advanced)

• Click the Edit Custom Lists button

• Click the Import button, then click OK, and close Excel Options.

• Type a letter on the worksheet, and use the Fill Handle to complete the series

Example 4: Create Character Reference Chart

You can create a reference chart with all the printable characters, by using the CHAR function. This chart will be a quick guide if you want to enter a symbol by typing (press Alt, and type the 4-digit code on the numeric keypad).

1. On a worksheet, type the numbers from 1 to 255
2. In the adjacent column, use the CHAR function to show the character for each code.

To see the characters for a different font, like Symbol or Wingdings, change the font in the CHAR function column.

Troubleshoot with CODE and CHAR

If you copy data from a web page, it might contain special characters, such as non-breaking spaces.

On your worksheet, those special characters don't stand out, but they can cause problems. For example, if you try to use that data for a lookup, with VLOOKUP, or with INDEX and MATCH, you'll get an error result in your formula.

Identify Problem Characters with CODE

In the screen shot below, there is a MATCH formula in cell B8, and its result is an #N/A error.

• =MATCH(A8,$A$4:$A$6,0)

There is a difference between the "Sweater Vest" in the lookup table (cell A5), and the "Sweater Vest" is in cell A8, which was copied from a web page.

To identify the difference, I used the CODE function in cells D5 and D8, to identify the 8th character's code number.

• In row 5, the code is 32 - a normal space character
• In row 8, the code is 160 - a non-breaking space character

Fix Problem Characters with CHAR

If possible, replace the non-breaking space characters with normal space characters, and the MATCH formula should work correctly.

However, in some situations, you might be able to change all of the data that contains non-breaking spaces. For example, if you copy and paste new data every day, that would add an extra step to your process.

• Macro: If you freqently need to replace non-breaking spaces with normal space characters, there is a macro that you can use. The VBA code is on the Fix Numbers that Don't Add Up page, in the Fix Hidden Characters section.

So, if you can't fix the web data, you can modify the MATCH formula instead, to prevent errors.

In the revised formula shown below, I added the SUBSTITUTE function to replace the non-breaking space, CHAR(160), with a normal space character, CHAR(32).

• =MATCH(SUBSTITUTE(A8,CHAR(160),CHAR(32)),$A$4:$A$6,0)

CODE and CHAR Limitations

In some cases, your data might have hidden characters, copied from a website, and the Excel CODE function doesn't recognize those characters.

This is usually caused by a number limitation on the CODE and CHAR functions:

• CODE and CHAR use the basic ANSI character set in Windows
• ANSI character set has a maximum code number of 255.
• The hidden characters are probably from a different character set, and have a code number greater than 255
• CODE and CHAR functions treat those unknown characters as a question mark (code 63)

Solution: For higher numbers, use the UNICODE and UNICHAR functions, shown in the next xection

UNICODE Function and UNICHAR Function

To overcome the 255 code number limitation, you can use the following two functions, which were introduced in Excel 2013.

• UNICODE
• UNICHAR

For example, in the screen shot above,

• CODE function in cell C3 treats unknown hidden character as a question mark, and returns number 63, which is incorrect
• UNICODE function in cell D3 recognizes the hidden character in cell B3, and returns its Unicode number, 8237.

And in the screen shot below:

• CHAR function in cell C9 returns an error, because the its code number limit is 255.
• UNICHAR function in cell D9 returns the correct character, an uppercase sigma (Σ)

Add Symbols - Keyboard Shortcuts

To show a specific symbol on a worksheet, you can use its CODE number in a keyboard shortcut.

• Note: You have to use the numbers on the numeric keypad (not the main keyboard numbers)

Keyboard With Numeric Keypad

If your keyaboard has a number keypad at the side, follow these steps:

1. On the keyboard, press the Alt key
2. On the numeric keypad, type the code as a 4-digit number (add leading zeros if needed)
• For example, the copyright symbol © is code 169
• Press Alt, and type 0169 on the number keypad
3. Press Enter, to see the copyright symbol in the cell.

Keyboard Without Numeric Keypad

If your laptop computer doesn't have a number keypad, you might need to press special keys to use the numeric keypad function. Check the owner’s manual, for directions.

Here’s what worked on my compact Dell laptop:

1. Press the Fn key, and tap the F4 key, to enable NumLock
2. Next, find the "hidden" numeric keypad within the letters on the keyboard.
• On my keyboard, J=1, K=2, etc.
3. Press the Alt key, and the Fn key
4. Then, using the "hidden" numeric keypad, type the code as a 4-digit number (add leading zeros if necessary)
• For example, the copyright symbol © is code 169, so type 0169
5. Press Enter, to see the symbol in the cell.
6. When you're finished, press the Fn key, and the F4 key, to disable NumLock

Special Code - 1 to 31

In the previous section, I said to use a 4-digit code with the keyboard shortcuts.

However, there is a special set of codes that don't need leading zeros - numbers 1 to 31.

• In the screen shot below, I've listed those numbers.
• Beside each number is the symbol that appears if you press Alt, and type that number on the number keypad.

The shortcut I use most often is Alt + 7, to insert a bullet point into a cell.

I like the triangle arrows too, but can't remember their code numbers! So, I made a printable list, to keep beside my computer. A quick look reminds me of those codes.

• Get a copy of my Number Keypad Symbols list, in an Excel file.

Show Emojis With UNICHAR

If you're making an Excel report at work, you probably don't need a happy face emoji anywhere on the worksheet. But if you're planning a party, or making a household chores list, a few emojis can add a touch of fun!

• Tip: To manually enter an emoji, press the Windows key on your keyboard, and tap the period key. Follow the steps in the emoji window that pops up.
• Emojis are black & white in desktop Excel, and coloured in Excel for the Web.

UNICHAR and HEX2DEC

Another way to add emojis in Excel is with the UNICHAR function.

For example, the screen shot below, cell B3 shows the "partying face" emoji, for the code number (129395) in cell C3

Here's the formula in cell B3: =UNICHAR(C3)

Emoji List

To see a full list of emojis, download the Emoji Chart and List workbook. Thanks to Ken Puls from excelguru.ca, who created the Excel chart, shown below.

• Tip: You an learn more about emojis in this Wikipedia article.

Treasure Hunt Game - Unicode Emojis

For a fun example of using emojis in Excel, you can download my Excel Treasure Hunt game, shown below. There's a short video in the next section, where I show how the game works.

• In green grid, emojis are revealed, based on numbers you enter in blue cells
• The UNICHAR function shows a "win" or "lose" emoji
• There's a different set of emojis for each of the 5 games available

In the Hoppy Hunt game shown below, the "win" is a rabbit emoji, and the "lose" is a kangaroo emoji. You don't want to find one of those in your garden!

Treasure Hunt Game Demo

In this 3-minute video, I show how to play the game, and how it works. There are formulas, conditional formatting, and a data validation drop-down list.

To use the "New Game" button, macros have to be enabled, but you can play the game without macros, if you prefer!

Get the Excel Files ✅

• CODE and CHAR: To see the CODE and CHAR function examples from this page, download the CODE and CHAR function sample workbook. The zipped file is in xlsx format, and does not contain any macros.
• Quick Symbols: This workbook has a printable list of 31 Number Keypad Symbols that you can insert, using the Alt key, with numbers from the number keypad. The zipped file is in xlsx format, and does not contain any macros.
• UNICHAR Emojis: To see a full list of emojis, that you can use with the UNICHAR function, download the Emoji Chart and List workbook. Thanks to Ken Puls from excelguru.ca, who created the Excel chart.
• Treasure Hunt Game: For a fun example of using emojis in Excel, you can download my Excel Treasure Hunt game. The zipped file is in xlsm format, and has a macro that clears the grid to start a new game. Note: You can play the game without enabling the macros.

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