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U+00BF · Latin-1 Supplement

Inverted Question Mark ¿

The inverted question mark opens a question in Spanish, so readers know from the start that the sentence is interrogative; the normal question mark closes it. It is required in standard Spanish writing and also used in Galician. English speakers most often need it for greetings, signs, school assignments, and bilingual marketing.

WindowsAlt 168 / 0191
MacOption + Shift + /
UnicodeU+00BF
HTML¿
¿U+00BF

Character codes

Unicode code pointU+00BF
Decimal191
HTML named entity¿
HTML (hex)¿
HTML (decimal)¿
CSS\00BF
JavaScript\u00BF
Python\u00BF
UTF-8 bytesC2 BF
UTF-1600BF
URL-encoded%C2%BF

Character details

Official nameINVERTED QUESTION MARK
Unicode blockLatin-1 Supplement
General categoryOther Punctuation (Po)
SymbolHero categoryPunctuation
EmojiNo

How to type ¿

Windows

  • Hold Alt and type 168 on the numeric keypad (Num Lock on), then release Alt. Alt 168 uses the code page 437.
  • Hold Alt and type 0191 on the numeric keypad (Num Lock on), then release Alt. Alt 0191 uses the Windows-1252 code page.
  • In Microsoft Word or Outlook: type 00BF then press Alt + X.
  • Open Character Map (search “Character Map” in Start), tick “Advanced view”, search for “inverted question mark”, then Select and Copy.

Mac

  • Press Option + Shift + / (US English keyboard layout).
  • Press Control + Command + Space to open the Character Viewer, search “inverted question mark”, and double-click the result.
  • With the Unicode Hex Input keyboard enabled (System Settings → Keyboard → Input Sources), hold Option and type 00BF.

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 “inverted question mark” or enter U+00BF.
  • HTML: ¿ or ¿
  • Excel / Google Sheets: =UNICHAR(191)

Examples

  • ¿Cómo estás?
  • ¿Dónde está el baño?
  • ¿Qué hora es?
  • ¿Listo para empezar?

Good to know

Don’t mix it up: Often confused with the reversed question mark ⸮ (U+2E2E), sometimes used for irony, which is mirrored rather than upside down.

Tip: When a question starts mid-sentence, the opening mark goes where the question begins: 'Si llueve, ¿vamos al cine?'.

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.

Guides

How to Type Spanish Accents and ¿ ¡ on Any Keyboard How to Type Special Characters on a Mac How to Type Symbols on iPhone and Android Alt Codes: How to Use Them (With and Without a Numpad)

Similar punctuation

Broken Bar
Section Sign
Diaeresis
Copyright Symbol
Left Guillemet
Registered Trademark Symbol
Macron
Acute Accent
Paragraph Sign (Pilcrow)
Middle Dot
Cedilla
Right Guillemet
En Dash
Em Dash
Left Single Quotation Mark
Right Single Quotation Mark (Apostrophe)
Single Low-9 Quotation Mark
Left Double Quotation Mark
Right Double Quotation Mark
Double Low-9 Quotation Mark
Dagger
Double Dagger
Bullet Point
Ellipsis

See all 195 punctuation →

Questions

What is the Unicode for ¿?

It is U+00BF (INVERTED QUESTION MARK), decimal 191.

Is there a Windows Alt code for it?

Yes: Alt 168 or Alt 0191 on the numeric keypad.

How do I type it on a Mac?

Option + Shift + / on a US English keyboard, or use the Character Viewer (Control + Command + Space).

What is the HTML code?

Use the named entity ¿ or the numeric reference ¿.