There may be times when you want to make a bullet point (•) but your software or application doesn’t provide an easy and convenient way to do it. Don’t worry because you can insert or type the symbol with hardly any effort at all. Just follow the simple steps in this article and you will be making bullet points like a pro.
A bullet point is a typographical symbol that prepends the items in a list. A list that uses bullet points are called bulleted lists. In web design, bulleted lists are often called unordered lists, as opposed to ordered lists (or numbered lists) which are arranged in numerical order.
Bullet points come in different shapes including square, circle, arrow and diamond. Word processing software, such as Microsoft Word, provide numerous ways to insert bullet symbols in various shapes and colors. However, ASCII or text-only applications such as Notepad don’t have support for bullet symbols, so users typically substitute them with other symbols such as asterisks and hyphens.
If your favorite application doesn’t have support for bullet symbols, you can either use other symbols or glyphs such as asterisks, or you can insert the bullet symbol using the methods listed in this article. For the sake of simplicity, we’ll only teach you how to add the regular bullet point consisting of a black dot (•).
Type a Bullet Point on a Windows Keyboard
You can use a keyboard shortcut to quickly produce any symbol or special character in Windows. If you are using a text-only application like Notepad where special characters are not available, you can simply type the shortcut keys and the corresponding symbol will be added instantly.
The keyboard shortcut for the bullet point symbol is Alt + 0149. Alternatively, you can use Alt + 7.
To use the keyboard shortcut Alt + 0149 to make a bullet point, follow these steps:
- Activate the numeric keypad by tapping the Num Lock key. This keypad is usually situated on the right side of the Windows keyboard.
- Place the insertion point or cursor where you want the symbol to be inserted.
- Press and hold down the Alt key.
- While holding down the Alt key, type the 0, 1, 4 and 9 keys on the numeric keypad one after the other.
- Release the Alt key and confirm that the bullet symbol was inserted into your document or application.
The keyboard shortcut method works with virtually any application, including but not limited to Notepad, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Google Chrome, and Adobe Photoshop. Take note that the keyboard shortcut method only works if your keyboard has a numeric keypad or number pad.
Type a Bullet Point on a Mac Keyboard
Mac users can type the bullet point using the keyboard shortcut Option + 8.
Here’s how to type the symbol using your MacBook or Mac computer:
- Place the cursor or insertion point where you want the symbol to be inserted in your document.
- Press and hold the Option key.
- While pressing the Option key, tap the 8 key.
- Check that the correct symbol has been inserted into your document or application.
Type a Bullet Point on a Linux Keyboard
Are you a Linux user? Typing bullet points in Linux or Ubuntu is a little more complicated than that of Windows and Mac, so just follow these steps to type the symbol in Linux:
- Open the document you’d like to insert the symbol.
- Press and hold the Ctrl, Shift and U keys.
- Type 2022 while holding the Ctrl, Shift and U keys.
- Release the keys and check that the symbol has been inserted.
Add Bullet Points in Microsoft Word
Microsoft Word makes it easy to make bulleted lists in your document. All you have to do is to click the Bullets icon on the Paragraph section of the Home menu.
You can also click the arrow next to the Bullets icon to change the shape or style of the bullet.
If you don’t want to make a bulleted list and instead add a bullet point manually, Word also allows you to do that.
Place the blinking cursor at the exact location where you want the bullet symbol to be inserted, and then click the Insert tab on the main menu.
Next, click Symbol. On the dropdown menu, click More Symbols.
You can now select from the symbols and special characters available in Word. To find the bullet point symbol, select “General Punctuation” on the Subset dropdown field.
Click the bullet symbol (•) to highlight it and then click Insert to add it to your document.
After you’ve added the bullet symbol in your Word document, it will now be included in your recently used symbols which you can access by clicking Insert and then Symbol.
You can also quickly type the bullet point symbol in your Word document using the keyboard shortcut Alt + 0149. However, you can change the keyboard shortcut and assign a new one by clicking the Shortcut Key button in the Symbol dialog. From there, you can set a new shortcut key that is easier to memorize.
Insert Bullet Points in Microsoft Excel
Adding bullet points in Microsoft Excel is almost similar to Word. There’s no option to create a bulleted list in Excel, but you can insert a bullet symbol to mimic one.
To start, place the blinking cursor or indicator on the cell where the symbol will be inserted.
Click the Insert tab on the Excel menu bar.
Click the Symbols icon that can be found on the right side of the tollbar. Afterwards, click Symbol.
The Symbol dialog will appear along with all the symbols and special characters you can use in Excel.
The bullet symbol might be difficult to find, so narrow down your choices by selecting “General Punctuation” on the Subset field.
Click the bullet symbol (•) to highlight it and then click Insert. Carefully check that the bullet symbol has been inserted in your workbook or spreadsheet.
Insert Bullet Points in Google Docs
Google Docs is a browser-based word processor that is becoming more popular due to its portability and ease of use. Just like Microsoft Word, Google Docs gives users the ability to create bulleted lists and insert bullet points into their documents.
To create a bulleted list in Google Docs, click the Bulleted List icon or type Ctrl + Shift + 8.
You can also make a bulleted list by clicking Format, selecting Bullets & Numbering and then Bulleted List. You can then choose the style and design of the bullets.
If you don’t want to create a bulleted list, you can add bullet points in Google Docs by clicking Insert and then Special Characters.
You will be shown a large library of special characters that you can insert in Google Docs. To find the bullet symbol, select “Punctuation” and “Other” in the dropdown fields. Click the bullet symbol (•) on the first row to insert it into your document.
You can also search the symbol by typing “bullet” in the “Search by keyword” field.
Insert the Bullet Symbol Using Character Map
Character Map is a Windows utility that allows you to copy and insert any symbol and special character. If your keyboard doesn’t have the numeric keypad, you can use the Character Map to insert the bullet symbol into any document or application.
Follow these steps to insert the bullet symbol using the Character Map:
- Click the Windows Start button at the bottom-left corner of the screen.
- Select Windows Accessories and then click Character Map.
- On the Character Map application, check “Advanced view.”
- Type “bullet” in the search field.
- Click the bullet symbol (•) to highlight it.
- Click Select and Copy.
- Go to your document and paste the symbol by right-clicking and selecting Paste, or by typing Ctrl + V.
Type a Bullet Point on Your Android Phone
Most Android keyboards support symbols such as bullet points. To insert bullets using the default Android keyboard Gboard, switch to the symbols keypad by tapping the ?123 key and then =\<. Click the bullet symbol (•) on the first row to insert it into your SMS or mobile application.
Type a Bullet Point on Your iPhone or iPad
iPhone and iPad users can easily type the bullet symbol using the native iOS keyboard. There’s no need to install a third-party app to insert the symbol into your document or text application.
To type the bullet point symbol on the iPhone or iPad, first tap the 123 key to access the numeric keypad. Tap the #+= key to view more symbols and then select the bullet symbol (•) to place it in your document or application.
Insert a Bullet Symbol as HTML
You can add the bullet point symbol to your webpage by using this HTML code:
•If you want to create an unordered list or bulleted list, you can use the following HTML code:
<ul>
<li>List item 1</li>
<li>List item 2</li>
<li>List item 3</li>
</ul>Bullet Point Copy and Paste
Do you want to copy the bullet point symbol for quick pasting into your document or application? Simply copy the bullet symbol by clicking it on the box below. Afterwards, go to your document and paste the symbol.
To paste the copied symbol, just right-click and select Paste, or press Ctrl + V. If you’re on mobile, just long press and select Paste. The symbol is unstyled and unformatted so there’s no need to paste it as plain text.
Final Thoughts
Most desktop and web applications have extensive support for bullet points and bulleted lists so you don’t have to manually insert the symbol. But if you’re working in an environment with no support for bullets, you can use the Windows keyboard shortcut Alt + 0149 or just copy the symbol from this page.
There you have it. You’ve just learned how to make a bullet symbol in various platforms and applications like Microsoft Word and Google Docs. You might also want to learn how to type the infinity symbol and the approximately symbol.
