How to Type French Accents (é è ê ç à ù ô œ)

Quick answer: On a Mac, use the Option dead keys: Option + E (é), Option + ` (è, à, ù), Option + I (ê, â, î, ô, û), then the letter; Option + C gives ç. On Windows, the US-International layout lets you type ' then E for é, or use Alt codes such as Alt + 0233. Copy the most common ones here:

ée with Acute (é)U+E9CopyDetails
èe with Grave (è)U+E8CopyDetails
çc with Cedilla (ç)U+E7CopyDetails
àa with Grave (à)U+E0CopyDetails

French uses five kinds of accent marks plus two ligatures: the acute (é), grave (è, à, ù), circumflex (â, ê, î, ô, û), diaeresis or tréma (ë, ï, ü, ÿ), the cedilla (ç), and the ligatures œ and æ. You don’t need a French keyboard to type any of them. For a short message, the SymbolHero Accent Keyboard is the fastest route: its French row puts every letter on a button, and you copy the finished text in one click. For regular writing, pick one of the methods below.

French accents keyboard reference

In the Windows column, hold Alt and type the number on the numeric keypad. Codes with a leading zero use the Windows-1252 table; the three-digit codes use the older DOS code page 437. Both are listed in the Alt code finder.

Typing French accents on Windows

US-International layout (recommended)

The United States-International layout is the best choice for English speakers who write French. Your keys stay where they are, but five punctuation keys become dead keys: press one, release it, and the next letter gets that accent.

• ' (apostrophe) adds an acute: é. Followed by C it gives ç.
• ` (grave, left of 1) adds a grave: è, à, ù.
• Shift + 6 (^) adds a circumflex: ê, â, î, ô, û.
• Shift + ' (") adds a diaeresis: ë, ï, ü, ÿ.
• Hold Shift on the letter for a capital (É, À, Ç…).

Because the apostrophe is a dead key, French elisions like l’été need one extra keystroke: press ' and then Space to get a plain apostrophe before a vowel. To add the layout, go to Settings, Time & language > Language & region, open your language’s options and add United States-International. Switch layouts with Windows + Space.

French or Canadian French layouts

A French (AZERTY) layout has dedicated keys for é, è, ç, à and ù, but it rearranges letters and puts digits on the Shift level of the number row. The Canadian French layouts keep a QWERTY arrangement and are often easier for North American typists. Choose these only if you write mostly in French.

Alt codes, the symbol panel, and Character Map

Alt codes need a numeric keypad with Num Lock on. On laptops without one, press Windows + . and use the Symbols tab, or open Character Map and copy the letter you need.

Typing French accents on a Mac

Every French accent is built into the standard Mac keyboard through the Option dead keys:

1. Press the dead key: Option + E (acute), Option + ` (grave), Option + I (circumflex) or Option + U (diaeresis).
2. Release, then type the vowel. Add Shift for a capital.

The cedilla and ligatures are single shortcuts: Option + C (ç), Option + Shift + C (Ç), Option + Q (œ), Option + Shift + Q (Œ). If you prefer not to memorize these, press and hold any vowel or C and choose from the popup.

Word, Google Docs, and phones

• Microsoft Word: type the hex code and press Alt + X, for example 00E7 for ç or 0153 for œ. Or use Insert > Symbol > More Symbols.
• Google Docs: Insert > Special characters, then search for “e grave”, “c cedilla” or “oe”.
• iPhone and Android: press and hold a vowel or the c key and slide to the accented letter. Holding o usually offers œ as well. Adding a French keyboard in settings gives you French autocorrect, which fills in most accents for you.

A few French typography notes

• Capitals keep their accents. The Académie française recommends accenting capital letters (ÉCOLE, À bientôt). Dropping them is a habit left over from typewriters.
• œ is not “oe”. Words like cœur, sœur and œuvre are properly written with the ligature œ (U+0153), which is a separate character from the two letters o and e.
• Guillemets. French quotations use « and », usually with a non-breaking space inside each mark: « Bonjour ».
• Which accent goes where is a spelling question, not a keyboard one. A good French dictionary or spell-checker is the reliable reference.

Why your French accents aren’t working

• Alt codes do nothing: you’re using the number row, or Num Lock is off.
• You see ‘e instead of é: the standard US layout is active, not US-International.
• Apostrophes vanish until you type a letter: that’s the US-International dead key. Press Space after it.
• Accents turn into é on a website: an encoding mismatch. Save pages as UTF-8 and declare <meta charset="utf-8">.
• Two identical-looking words don’t match: one may use a combining accent instead of a precomposed letter. Paste both into the Unicode lookup to compare code points.

Related characters

• Acute and grave: é, è, à, ù
• Circumflex: â, ê, î, ô, û
• Tréma: ë, ï, ü, ÿ
• Cedilla and ligatures: ç, Ç, œ, æ
• Guillemets: « and »
• All accented Latin letters

FAQ

What is the easiest way to type French accents on an English keyboard?

On a Mac, the built-in Option dead keys or press-and-hold. On Windows, add the United States-International layout; it needs no numeric keypad and keeps all your keys in place.

How do I type ç?

Mac: Option + C. Windows: Alt + 0231, or ' then C on US-International. Capital Ç is Alt + 0199 or Option + Shift + C.

How do I type œ?

Option + Q on a Mac or Alt + 0156 on Windows. Capital Πis Option + Shift + Q or Alt + 0140.

Do I need to accent capital letters in French?

Yes, accenting capitals is recommended in standard French, and every method above supports capitals with Shift.