Special Characters in HTML

This is a fairly complete table of the use of special characters in HTML. They are needed because the 8 bit codes for special characters are different on different platforms. In this table you will find the character, the numerical code (something like  ), the HTML code (if any), the hexadecimal code and comments.

The numerical code and the HTML code can both be used in HTML documents. It does not make any difference which one you use. The hexadecimal code is not used in HTML documents but you will see it in forms that are returned from Web pages and at other occasions.

Unfortunately, not all characters display the same on Macintosh and Windows machines, simply because the standard character sets are slightly different (see notes in the end). I suggest you avoid these characters.

I have done my best to ensure that this table is accurate. If you discover any mistakes or problems, please let me know and I will correct it. Thanks in advance for your help.

Note 1: ¦ displays a broken vertical bar on Windows machines and an oe dipthong on Macs.

Note 2: ² and ³ are used on the Macintosh for double curly quotes. Under windows they display superscript 2 and 3 respectively.

Note 3: ¹ displays a superscript one under Windows and a single curly quote on Macintosh.

Note 4: ¼, ½ and ¾ display fraction one-fourth, one-half and three-fourths respectively under Windows. On a Macintosh they show lowercase pi, uppercase pi and smaller-than-or-equal sign.

Note 5: × displays a diamond on Macintosh and a multiply sign under windows.