9 November 2020

Left arrow ← in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook

Peter Deegan Fonts, Microsoft 365, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office, Microsoft Office for Mac, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Powerpoint, Microsoft Word, Office 2007, Office 2010, Office 2013, Office 2016, Office 2019, Office 2021 / Office LTSC, Office 365 Symbols & Emoji in Microsoft Office, Windows and Mac

Type the Left arrow ← into Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint or Outlook. Both in Office for Windows and Office for Mac.

The official Unicode name is ‘Leftward Arrow” ← but it can be called ‘Left pointing’ ‘Left facing’ or just ‘Left Arrow’

How Left arrow ← looks in different fonts.

Here’s some examples of how Left arrow ← looks in common Office fonts.

Left arrow ← codes

These are the important code numbers or values you’ll need to enter the Left arrow or ←

Decimal: 8592 Hex: 2190

Web: ← or ← or ←

(web codes aren’t used in Microsoft Office, we’ve included them for the sake of completeness.)

Word and Outlook

The Left arrow ← sign does NOT have an inbuilt shortcut in Word.

Use the standard Word Alt + X symbol shortcut 2190 + Alt + X

Once in a document you can copy it to AutoCorrect and make your own shortcut.

Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook

Insert | Symbols | Symbol and look for the Left arrow symbol.

Windows

In Windows there are several shortcuts to enter the Left arrow ← character into any program, but they use a numeric keypad, not the number row above the letters.

Alt + 8592

Windows Character Map

The Windows Character Map accessory in all Windows releases

Character Map has a search feature, something missing from the Insert | Symbol in Office.

MacOS and Office for Mac inserting characters

On a Mac, to enter the Left arrow ← symbol:

Command + Control + Spacebar shortcut to open the Character Viewer.
Search for “ Left arrow “ and the Viewer should find the symbol you need.

Despite the name Character Viewer, the Apple system tool will also insert characters into any program, including Office for Mac.

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