What is the difference between the micro symbol (µ) and the Greek letter mu (μ)?

They look almost identical but are different Unicode characters. The micro sign µ (U+00B5) is the character defined by the SI system for unit prefixes such as µm and µs. The Greek small letter mu μ (U+03BC) is the 12th letter of the Greek alphabet, used in math and physics for variables like the coefficient of friction. Many fonts render them the same, but text search, code, and font-sensitive rendering can treat them differently, so copy the one that matches the intended use.

What is the Unicode code point for the micro symbol?

The micro sign is U+00B5. The visually similar Greek small letter mu is a separate code point, U+03BC.

What is the HTML entity for the micro symbol?

Use µ or the numeric entity µ in HTML. Both render as µ, the SI micro sign.

How do I write the micro symbol in LaTeX?

With the textcomp package loaded, \textmu{} produces the correct micro sign in text mode. In math mode, \mu produces the Greek letter mu, which many documents also accept for unit prefixes since most fonts render the glyphs identically.

How do I type the micro symbol on Windows or Mac?

On Windows, hold Alt and type 0181 on the numeric keypad (Alt+0181). On Mac, press Option+M, which produces the micro sign directly in most apps.

Should I use µ or u when abbreviating micro in plain text?

Use µ (or the ASCII fallback "u", as in "um" for micrometers) only when the proper micro sign is unavailable, such as in legacy plain-text systems or filenames that reject non-ASCII characters. In any document that supports Unicode, use the actual micro sign for correct rendering and searchability.

Micro Symbol

Name: Micro Symbol
Availability: InStock
Author: Nham Vu

Copy the micro symbol (µ) and get its Unicode, LaTeX, and HTML entity codes, plus how it differs from the Greek letter mu (μ).

Micro Symbol

Click the symbol to copy it

Formats

Character µ

Unicode U+00B5

HTML entity µ

HTML decimal µ

LaTeX (text mode) \textmu{}

CSS escape \00B5

JS / JSON escape µ

Click any row to copy that exact string.

Micro Sign (µ) vs. Greek Mu (μ)

Character	Name	Unicode	Typical use
	Micro sign	U+00B5	SI unit prefixes: µm, µs, µF, µg.
	Greek small letter mu	U+03BC	Math and physics variables, such as friction coefficient or mean.

Keyboard Shortcuts

System	Shortcut	Notes
Windows		Hold Alt, type 0181 on the numeric keypad.
Mac		Produces the micro sign directly in most apps.
Linux (GTK)		Type the hex code, then press Enter or Space.
Microsoft Word		Type 00B5 then press Alt+X to convert it.

Try it

Type a number and pick an SI prefix to build a ready-to-paste value.

5µm

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Summary

Copy the micro symbol (µ) and get its Unicode, LaTeX, and HTML entity codes, plus how it differs from the Greek letter mu (μ).

How it works

Click the large micro symbol to copy it to your clipboard.
Or click any row in the formats list (Unicode, LaTeX, HTML entity, CSS escape) to copy that exact string.
Use the unit builder to attach the symbol to a common SI prefix like m, s, F, or g.
Check the comparison table if you are unsure whether you need µ (micro sign) or μ (Greek mu).
Paste the symbol anywhere: documents, spreadsheets, code, or lab notes.

Use cases

Write measurements like 5µm (micrometers), 10µs (microseconds), or 100µF (microfarads).
Insert the micro sign into a datasheet, schematic, or lab report.
Get the correct HTML entity for a web page instead of pasting a raw Unicode character.
Get the LaTeX command for the micro sign in a scientific paper without breaking compilation.
Check whether a document should use the micro sign (µ) or the Greek letter mu (μ) for a variable name.
Type the symbol on Windows, Mac, or Linux without hunting for a keyboard shortcut.

Frequently Asked Questions

Last updated: 2026-07-22 · Reviewed by Nham Vu