U+266B · Miscellaneous Symbols
Beamed Eighth Notes ♫
Beamed eighth notes show two notes joined by a beam, a familiar visual shorthand for music. In text it marks lyrics, song titles, playlists and music-related posts, often at the start and end of a line that is being sung. It is also popular in video captions to show background music.
Character codes
| Unicode code point | U+266B | |
|---|---|---|
| Decimal | 9835 | |
| HTML (hex) | ♫ | |
| HTML (decimal) | ♫ | |
| CSS | \266B | |
| JavaScript | \u266B | |
| Python | \u266B | |
| UTF-8 bytes | E2 99 AB | |
| UTF-16 | 266B | |
| URL-encoded | %E2%99%AB |
Character details
| Official name | BEAMED EIGHTH NOTES |
|---|---|
| Unicode block | Miscellaneous Symbols |
| General category | Other Symbol (So) |
| SymbolHero category | Music Symbols |
| Emoji | No |
How to type ♫
Windows
- Hold Alt and type 14 on the numeric keypad (Num Lock on), then release Alt. Alt 14 uses the code page 437.
- In Microsoft Word or Outlook: type
266Bthen press Alt + X. - Open Character Map (search “Character Map” in Start), tick “Advanced view”, search for “beamed eighth notes”, then Select and Copy.
Mac
- Press Control + Command + Space to open the Character Viewer, search “beamed eighth notes”, and double-click the result.
- With the Unicode Hex Input keyboard enabled (System Settings → Keyboard → Input Sources), hold Option and type
266B.
iPhone & Android
- Tap Copy at the top of this page, then long-press where you want it and choose Paste.
Docs & web
- Google Docs: Insert → Special characters, then search “beamed eighth notes” or enter
U+266B. - HTML:
♫ - Excel / Google Sheets:
=UNICHAR(9835)
Examples
- ♫ Now playing: Summer Mix ♫
- ♫ Karaoke night ♫
- Sing along ♫
Good to know
Don’t mix it up: It resembles ♬ (U+266C, BEAMED SIXTEENTH NOTES), which has a double beam.
Tip: Its Alt code, 14, is in the control range and works only in some Windows applications, so copying it is more reliable.
Display: the character itself is always the same code point, but its shape comes from the font on the device showing it. If you see an empty box, the font lacks this glyph—the text is still correct.
Similar music symbols
Questions
What is the Unicode for ♫?
It is U+266B (BEAMED EIGHTH NOTES), decimal 9835.
Is there a Windows Alt code for it?
Yes: Alt 14 on the numeric keypad.
How do I type it on a Mac?
There is no built-in Option shortcut. Use the Character Viewer (Control + Command + Space) and search “beamed eighth notes”, or copy it from this page.
What is the HTML code?
Use the numeric reference ♫ (or ♫). There is no named entity.