HTML Character Entity Lookup – Search by Name or Symbol

HTML character entities are special codes used to display reserved characters or symbols in HTML documents. They are essential because certain characters (like <, >, &) have special meanings in HTML markup and would otherwise be interpreted as code. Entities ensure these characters render correctly on web pages. They also allow you to display symbols that may not be easily typed on a keyboard, such as © (©), € (€), or mathematical symbols like ∑ (∑). Without entities, your HTML could break or display incorrectly.

Named entities use a memorable name (e.g., © for ©) and are easier for developers to read and remember. Numeric entities use the character's Unicode code point in decimal (e.g., ©) or hexadecimal (e.g., ©) format. While named entities are more readable, not all Unicode characters have named entities. Numeric entities can represent any Unicode character, making them more versatile. Both achieve the same result in browser rendering, and you can use either based on your preference.

There are four critical characters you should always escape in HTML content to prevent rendering issues and improve security (especially against XSS attacks): < (less than <), > (greater than >), & (ampersand &), and " (double quote " within attribute values). Additionally, ' (single quote ') is recommended for attribute values enclosed in single quotes. Escaping these ensures your HTML validates correctly and protects against injection vulnerabilities.

Yes, modern browsers fully support UTF-8 encoding, so you can typically insert Unicode characters directly into your HTML source code — for example, typing © directly instead of writing ©. However, using HTML entities is still considered best practice for improved readability in source code, better compatibility with older systems, and clarity when working with symbols that look similar (such as the en dash – vs. hyphen -). Entities also make your intent explicit to other developers reading your code.

A non-breaking space (  or  ) is a space character that prevents an automatic line break at its position. It's commonly used to keep words or symbols together on the same line (e.g., "10 km" keeps "10 km" together), to create visual spacing in layouts, or to prevent empty table cells from collapsing. In modern web design, CSS properties like white-space: nowrap or word-spacing are often preferred, but   remains a quick and widely supported solution for inline spacing control.

This lookup tool is designed precisely for that purpose! You can search by typing the symbol itself (copy-paste it into the search box), by the entity name (e.g., "copy" for ©), or by a descriptive keyword (e.g., "copyright"). You can also browse by category using the filter buttons. For symbols not listed here, you can use their Unicode code point as a numeric entity (&#XXXX;), which works for any Unicode character. Many developer tools and browser extensions also provide entity reference lookups.