Typing the euro sign: how to make € on your keyboard in Windows

Written on 17 September 2026

You are typing a quote, you get to the amount and the euro sign is nowhere to be found. On most Dutch keyboards it is simply on the 5, you just do not get there with an ordinary press of that key.

This article sets out all the ways, including the combination that works when the standard shortcut lets you down. You also read why that happens, because the cause says something about your keyboard layout.

Typing the euro sign on Windows

On a Dutch layout you hold the AltGr key and press 5. AltGr is the Alt key to the right of your space bar, and it does something different from the left Alt.

Look at your keys: on the 5, next to the digit and the percent sign, the € symbol is often printed too, usually in the bottom right. You reach that third character with AltGr.

If it does not work, try Ctrl and Alt together with the 5. On some laptops without a separate AltGr key that is the equivalent.

The method that always works: Alt and 0128

This one works regardless of your keyboard layout. Hold the Alt key, type 0128 on the numeric keypad and then release Alt.

There is one condition: the digits have to come from the numeric keypad, the block on the right, and not from the row of numbers above the letters. With the number row nothing happens.

If your laptop has no numeric keypad, which is usual with 13 and 14 inch models, this method drops away. Use AltGr and 5 then, or insert the character through the symbols window.

The euro sign on a MacBook

On macOS with a Dutch layout it is Option and 2. On many keyboards the Option key is labelled Alt.

If your Mac is on a US layout, Option and 2 gives you the trademark sign instead of the euro. Switch layout then, or open the character viewer with Control, Command and the space bar and search there for euro.

Where is the sign on other keyboards?

This immediately explains why it sometimes works differently than you are used to on a second-hand laptop from abroad. Which layouts exist and what the differences mean is in the comparison of keyboard layouts.

Why does the shortcut not work?

In almost every case that is because the active keyboard layout in Windows does not match what is printed on your keys. You are then typing on a Dutch keyboard while Windows thinks it is a US one.

Look at the bottom right of your taskbar, near the clock. There you see an abbreviation such as NLD or ENG, and with the Windows key and the space bar you switch between the installed layouts.

If you notice that more characters are wrong, for example the at sign or the quotation marks, it is the same problem. That is worked out in keyboard produces the wrong characters.

The euro sign in Excel and Word

The shortcuts simply work in both programs. In Excel there is also a better route for amounts: use the currency format instead of typing the character.

Select your cells, go to the Home tab and under Number choose the currency notation with euro. Excel then shows the sign but keeps the cell a number, so you can keep calculating with it.

If you want to insert the character on its own, you can do that in Word through Insert, Symbol. The euro sign is there among the currency symbols.

How do you write amounts correctly?

In Dutch texts the sign comes before the amount, with a space in between: € 25,00. Decimals are separated with a comma and thousands with a full stop.

In running text you may also write it out in full as euro. Choose one form within a document and stick to it, because alternating looks careless in a quote or an invoice.

The official abbreviation in an international context is EUR, for example EUR 25.00. You mainly come across that in banking and bookkeeping.

Where does the symbol come from?

The European Commission presented the euro symbol in 1996, years before the currency came into circulation. The shape is inspired by the Greek letter epsilon, as a reference to Europe.

The two horizontal lines through the sign stand for stability. As a means of payment the euro reached the wallets of the euro area in 2002.

And the other characters you often need?

The euro sign is rarely the only character people look for. The same AltGr key produces a handful of symbols you come across in quotes and invoices.

If you regularly come across a character that is nowhere on your keyboard, use the emoji and symbols window. In Windows you open it with the Windows key and the full stop, and there is a tab with symbols in it.

For anyone working with amounts a lot, it is worth getting AltGr and 5 into your fingers. That saves a detour through a menu every time.

In brief

On a Dutch keyboard you type the euro sign with AltGr and 5. If that does not work, hold Alt with 0128 on the numeric keypad, because that combination works regardless of your layout. On a MacBook it is Option and 2, and with a Belgian or German layout the sign sits on the E instead of on a digit. If nothing works at all, check at the bottom right of your taskbar which keyboard layout is active; that is nearly always the cause. In Excel, for amounts, use the currency format instead, so you can keep calculating with the numbers.

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Sources

• Microsoft Support: inserting special characters with shortcuts
• European Commission: the euro symbol and the name euro
• Apple Support: typing special characters on a Mac