Copy £, the British pound symbol, or type it with Alt+156; # and ℔, the other pound signs, follow.
Pound Symbol Keyboard
£Pound signU+00A3Ready to copy
17 pound signs, codes and look-alikes. Tap any value to copy it.
17 pound signs, codes and look-alikes. A character and its name both copy the character. A code copies the code.
Character
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U+00A3. The money sign of sterling and of other pounds, the Egyptian and the Syrian among them: a capital L with a bar, from the Latin libra. Alt+156 or Alt+0163 on a number pad, Option+3 on the U.S. layout, Compose, L, - with a Compose key. On a UK keyboard, Shift+3.
U+0023. What American usage calls the pound sign: Shift+3 on the U.S. layout, the same two keys that give £ on a UK keyboard. Unicode names it Number sign and keeps pound sign (weight) as another name.
U+2114. The letters l and b tied by a bar: the old written abbreviation for pounds of weight, which Unicode's other name for it, pounds, still says. The number sign is believed to derive from it.
U+20A4. Lira sign, drawn with two bars. Unicode's notes: intended for lira, but not widely used, and £ is the preferred character for lira. Compose, L, = types it.
Made of U+00A3 and 5: five pounds. For sterling the sign goes before the number with no space.
Two plain letters, l and b: the abbreviation for the pound as a weight, descended from ℔ and so from libra.
U+FFE1. The money sign at the full width of a Chinese or Japanese character, from the Halfwidth and Fullwidth Forms block. No codes of its own.
U+1F4B7. A banknote printed with £. The emoji list calls it pound banknote; Emoji 1.0.
The ISO 4217 code of the pound sterling: three capital letters that international banking prefers to the sign.
Made of E and U+00A3: the Egyptian pound, told apart from sterling by a letter in front.
U+FF03. The number sign made wide. Every character on the keyboard has such a twin, for setting beside Chinese or Japanese text.
U+FE5F. A shrunken number sign with no key and no code of its own, so it is one to copy.
Made of U+0023 and 1: number one, the use that gives the sign its Unicode name.
U+266F. For music, not for numbers or pounds: its bars tilt and its two stems stand straight, the reverse of #. ♯ in a web page.
U+0141. A letter of Polish, among other languages: an L with a slanted stroke. It names no money.
U+20BA. Another money sign with a crossed stem. Unicode notes it is Turkey's official lira sign. Added in Unicode 6.2 (2012).
U+023D. An L crossed by a level bar, as £ often is, yet it is a letter of the alphabet and names no money. It dates from Unicode 4.1 (2005).
The pound symbol is £, Pound sign, U+00A3: Shift+3 on a UK keyboard, and elsewhere Alt+156 on the number pad or Option+3 on the U.S. layout. Pound sign also names # and ℔, and both are here.
Read the full guide
Three signs called the pound sign
£ is money, a currency symbol: sterling, and the Egyptian and Syrian pounds among others. # is what American usage calls the pound sign, the key at Shift+3 on a U.S. keyboard. ℔ is an old abbreviation for pounds of weight, which lives on as the letters lb. All three are traced to libra, the Roman pound.
Typing £
Alt+156 and Alt+0163 both type it on a number pad. Option+3 does on the U.S. layout, and Compose, L, - with a Compose key. In a web page write £.
A £ with two bars is still U+00A3: one bar or two is the choice of the font.
₤, the lira sign, is another character, one that Unicode itself notes is not widely used.
International banking prefers the code GBP to the sign.
Questions and answers
How do I get the British pound symbol on a keyboard?
On a UK keyboard press Shift+3. On a U.S. layout those keys give #, so hold Alt and type 156 on the number pad, or press Option+3 where the keyboard has an Option key.
What is the Alt code for the pound sign?
Alt+156, or Alt+0163 with the zero in front. Both type £ when the digits are entered on the number pad with Alt held down. The pound sign that is # needs no code: it is Shift+3 on the U.S. layout.
Why is # called the pound sign?
It is believed to derive from ℔, a written abbreviation for pounds of weight: the letters l and b with a bar across them. In the United States the name pound sign stayed with #. In the UK it means £.
Is the lira sign the same as the pound sign?
No. ₤, Lira sign, is U+20A4 and has two bars. Unicode notes that it is not widely used and that £, U+00A3, is the preferred character for lira as well. A two-bar £ in some font is still U+00A3.
All 17 pound signs, codes and look-alikes
Start here 6
℔L b bar symbolU+2114. The letters l and b tied by a bar: the old written abbreviation for pounds of weight, which Unicode's other name for it, pounds, still says. The number sign is believed to derive from it.
lblb, the letters for pounds of weightTwo plain letters, l and b: the abbreviation for the pound as a weight, descended from ℔ and so from libra.
₤Lira signU+20A4. Lira sign, drawn with two bars. Unicode's notes: intended for lira, but not widely used, and £ is the preferred character for lira. Compose, L, = types it.
#Number signU+0023. What American usage calls the pound sign: Shift+3 on the U.S. layout, the same two keys that give £ on a UK keyboard. Unicode names it Number sign and keeps pound sign (weight) as another name.
£Pound signU+00A3. The money sign of sterling and of other pounds, the Egyptian and the Syrian among them: a capital L with a bar, from the Latin libra. Alt+156 or Alt+0163 on a number pad, Option+3 on the U.S. layout, Compose, L, - with a Compose key. On a UK keyboard, Shift+3.
£5Pound sign before a numberMade of U+00A3 and 5: five pounds. For sterling the sign goes before the number with no space.
Show all 17 pound signs, codes and look-alikes (11 more)
Pound signs for money 4
💷Banknote with pound signU+1F4B7. A banknote printed with £. The emoji list calls it pound banknote; Emoji 1.0.
E£Egyptian pound, with its letterMade of E and U+00A3: the Egyptian pound, told apart from sterling by a letter in front.
￡Fullwidth pound signU+FFE1. The money sign at the full width of a Chinese or Japanese character, from the Halfwidth and Fullwidth Forms block. No codes of its own.
GBPGBP, the code of the pound sterlingThe ISO 4217 code of the pound sterling: three capital letters that international banking prefers to the sign.
The number sign 3
＃Fullwidth number signU+FF03. The number sign made wide. Every character on the keyboard has such a twin, for setting beside Chinese or Japanese text.
#1Number one, with the number signMade of U+0023 and 1: number one, the use that gives the sign its Unicode name.
﹟Small number signU+FE5F. A shrunken number sign with no key and no code of its own, so it is one to copy.
Not a pound sign 4
ȽLatin capital letter l with barU+023D. An L crossed by a level bar, as £ often is, yet it is a letter of the alphabet and names no money. It dates from Unicode 4.1 (2005).
ŁLatin capital letter l with strokeU+0141. A letter of Polish, among other languages: an L with a slanted stroke. It names no money.
♯Music sharp signU+266F. For music, not for numbers or pounds: its bars tilt and its two stems stand straight, the reverse of #. ♯ in a web page.
₺Turkish lira signU+20BA. Another money sign with a crossed stem. Unicode notes it is Turkey's official lira sign. Added in Unicode 6.2 (2012).