How to type the Pi symbol in Word

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Type the Pi symbol into a Word document using the “Symbol” section of the upper ribbon in Word. The Pi (π) symbol is used a lot in math, mostly in any equation that has to do with the volume or area of circles and spheres. The Pi is also used when measuring angles in radians.

The Pi symbol is a special Greek alphabet character. If you want to use the Office package to write some math, you may need to know how to insert the Pi symbol in Word. Take a quick look at your keyboard, and you’ll immediately realize there is no keypad you can use to type the symbol. Fortunately, there is a way to type the Pi symbol into Word documents using the Symbols or Equation dialogues or Alt codes.

Use the Symbols dialogue to type Pi symbol

To type the Pi symbol into a word document, use the “Symbol” section of the upper ribbon in Word. Navigate to the Insert section and look at the right end group of “Symbols.” You can use either the Equation or Symbol section to insert the Pi symbol, but the Symbol option is better unless you’re typing a full equation.

Click Symbol and then navigate to More Symbols at the bottom of the drop-down menu to open a pop-up window with all symbols in Word’s database. Click on the Subset drop-down menu and choose Greek and Coptic, Search for the Pi symbol π visually and highlight it. Next, click Insert to paste it in your Word document at the position of the cursor.

With the Equation option, you’ll place the symbol in an equation field in your document instead of placing it as ordinary text. Navigate to Equation or press Alt and = simultaneously on your keyboard. Look to the “Symbols” group on the ribbon and click the More arrow and Basic Math at the top. Choose Greek Letters and click the Pi symbol to add it to your document.

Type Pi symbol in Word using Alt code

The easiest Pi keyboard shortcut you can use in Word is an Alt code. Make sure to activate Num lock on your keyboard before using the Alt code. Press the Num Lock key located at the top-right of the numeric keypad and place the cursor in the position where you want to insert the Pi symbol, then press and hold down Alt on your keyboard, type the code 227 and release the Alt keypad to insert the Pi symbol. Use the code 928 in the same process to insert the capital Pi symbol.

Although more difficult than the previous option above, You can also use the Alt option in other programs and web browsers.

To type the Pi symbol in Excel or other office programs, you can use the Alt option or the “Symbols” dialogue.

Copy and paste the Pi symbol into Word

Alternatively, you can copy and paste the Pi symbol into a Word document. This is actually the easiest method to insert the Pi symbol in Word. Look for any website or online document that already has the Pi symbol. Highlight the symbol, right-click it and then select Copy or highlight and press Ctrl + C together. Next, move over to your Word document to insert the symbol, right-click your mouse and click Paste or press Ctrl + V together.

The copy-paste method has its benefits, but the downside is whenever you need to write the Pi symbol in the future, you’ll need to look for a website or online page that already has the character. Both options above are easier to produce the Pi symbol without the need to find the character somewhere else again.