How to Use Special Symbols That Aren't on Your Keyboard
A standard QWERTY keyboard has around a hundred characters, but the Unicode standard defines more than a hundred thousand. When you need a character like the square root sign (√), infinity (∞), a currency symbol (₺, €, ¥), or a Greek letter (Ω, π), you usually can't type it directly from your keyboard. There are three common solutions: open your operating system's character map app, memorize the character's Unicode code point and enter it with a special key combination, or copy and paste the symbol from a source where it's already written.
All three methods have practical downsides. Character map apps are usually slow and not organized by category; memorizing code points only makes sense for a handful of frequently used symbols; and copying from a random source means you can't be sure it actually contains the character you think it does. That's why a searchable reference page with symbols listed by category is the most practical way to find the character you need in seconds.
One thing to keep in mind when using a symbol is the target platform's Unicode support. Most modern browsers, operating systems, and apps display thousands of characters without issue; however, very old software or extremely plain text fields may show an empty box or a question mark, especially for newer emoji and rare symbols. Commonly used math, currency, and punctuation symbols are the safest choices in this regard, since they've been part of the Unicode standard for decades.
You can browse the category lists on this site to find the symbol you need, click it to copy it to your clipboard, and then paste it into any document, message, or social media post. If you know the name of the character you're looking for, using the search box on the home page is faster than browsing the list.