Adding symbols, emojis, and special characters to your Google Docs can help spice up your documents and make them more visually engaging. While your keyboard has many useful symbols, there are countless others you may want to insert into your Docs.
In this step-by-step guide, you’ll learn multiple methods for inserting symbols, emojis, and special characters into Google Docs with just a few clicks.
Insert Emojis in Google Docs
Emojis are a fun way to add visual flair and emotion to your documents. Here are three easy ways to insert emojis into Google Docs:
1. Insert > Emoji
This method gives you access to Google’s full emoji catalog:
- Open your Google Doc and place your cursor where you want the emoji to appear.
- Click Insert > Emoji in the top menu bar.
- Search for an emoji or scroll through categories like “Smileys & Emotion”.
- Select your desired emoji to add it to your document.
2. @Emoji Search
You can also search for specific emojis:
- Type @ followed by your emoji search term, like @smile.
- Select the perfect emoji from the search results.
3. Emoji Shortcuts
Use emoji shortcuts to quickly insert popular emojis:
- Type : followed by the emoji name, like :smile:.
- Press Enter to insert that emoji.
These shortcuts save time if you use certain emojis often.
Insert Special Characters
Special characters like © and TM add professional polish to documents:
- Click Insert > Special characters.
- Browse categories or search for a specific character.
- Click the character to add it to your document.
Use Equation Tools
The equation editor lets you insert math symbols, Greek letters, and more:
- Click Insert > Equation.
- Click dropdown menus to browse options or use LaTeX shortcuts.
- For example, type
\alphafor the α symbol.
Copy and Paste Symbols
If a symbol isn’t available in Google Docs, use copy/paste:
- Find the symbol in another app like Microsoft Word or a symbol collection website.
- Select the symbol and copy it.
- Paste the symbol into your Google Doc.
This guarantees access to rare symbols.
Use Add-Ons for More Symbols
Doc add-ons provide specialized symbol and emoji catalogs:
- Click Add-ons > Get add-ons in the top menu bar.
- Search for “symbol” or “emoji” to find relevant add-ons.
- Enable the add-on and access extra symbols.
Add-ons are free and make inserting niche symbols easy.
Insert Symbols on Mobile
The Google Docs mobile app also lets you insert various symbols and emojis. Here’s how:
iOS
- Tap the + symbol.
- Select Special Characters or scroll and tap the emoji icon.
- Search or browse categories.
- Tap a symbol to insert it.
Android
- Tap the + symbol.
- Choose Special characters or Emoji.
- Search or browse the categories.
- Tap a symbol to insert it.
By following the steps in this guide, you can spice up your documents by inserting emojis, special characters, math symbols, and more in Google Docs. With web and mobile insertion options, it’s easy to find and add symbols wherever you’re working.
Experiment with different symbols and emojis to take your Docs to the next level!
