What the @ symbol means
- Email addresses:
jane.doe@example.comreads “jane dot doe at example dot com.” Ray Tomlinson chose @ for network email in 1971 to separate the user’s name from the host computer. - Mentions and handles: on social platforms and in work chat, @name notifies a person or labels an account.
- Prices and rates: in invoices and shorthand, “12 units @ $4.50” means “at $4.50 each.”
- Casual shorthand: “Meet @ 6” is fine in a text message but not in a business email. In formal writing, spell out “at.”
The official Unicode name is commercial at, a reminder of its long use in bookkeeping and trade before email made it famous.
@ in code and on the web
- Python: decorators (
@property) and, since Python 3.5, matrix multiplication (a @ b). - Java and TypeScript: annotations and decorators, such as
@Override. - CSS: at-rules like
@mediaand@import. - Package names: npm scopes such as
@types/node. - Excel: in current versions, @ can appear in formulas as the implicit intersection operator.
Look-alikes: the fullwidth ＠ belongs in Chinese, Japanese and Korean text set in fullwidth characters, and it breaks an email address if it slips in. The circled ⓐ is a decorative letter, not an at sign. If an address copied from a PDF or website bounces, retype the @ by hand.
Typing @ on keyboards and phones
- US keyboard, Windows or Mac: Shift+2.
- If Shift+2 types a quotation mark: your computer is using a different keyboard layout, such as UK English. Switch the input language back to US English from the taskbar (Windows) or the input menu in the menu bar (Mac).
- iPhone: when you type into an email field, the keyboard shows @ next to the space bar; elsewhere it is on the numbers page.
- Android (Gboard): on the symbols page, and on the main letters page in email fields.
- Windows Alt code: hold Alt and type 64 on the numeric keypad.
Frequently asked questions
How do I type the @ symbol on a keyboard?
On a US keyboard, hold Shift and press 2. This works on both Windows and Mac.
Why does Shift+2 type a quotation mark instead of @?
Your computer is set to a non-US keyboard layout, such as UK English. Switch the input language back to US English.
What is the @ symbol called?
In English it is the at sign or at symbol. Its Unicode name is commercial at.
Can I use @ instead of “at” in writing?
Only in informal messages, prices and handles. In formal writing, spell out the word.
Unicode data: Unicode Character Database 18.0.0 (unicode.org).