Numero sign №

№ combines a capital N with a small raised o, from the Latin numero, “by number.” It works exactly like “No.”:

• Russian, Ukrainian and Bulgarian: № is the standard sign, and Russian keyboards have it on the number row (Shift+3).
• Product names and design: labels like “Blend № 7” or “Edition № 12” use it for a vintage, European look.
• Forms and tickets: some print № before an invoice, case or seat number.

In US English, the everyday forms are “No. 7” in formal writing and “#7” informally. AP style uses “No.” with a figure for position or rank: the No. 1 seed, the No. 3 choice.

• # is the US number sign and sits on every keyboard, but outside North America it reads as “hash” or “hashtag,” so “#7” is less clear to an international audience than “No. 7.”
• Nº (N plus the ordinal indicator º) is a common substitute in Spanish and Portuguese text and in fonts that lack №. It looks similar but is two characters.
• No. spelled with letters is the safest choice for text that will be searched, read aloud or processed by software.

Unicode classifies № as a compatibility character that normalizes to the letters “No,” so some search tools match the two. Put a space or nonbreaking space between the sign and the number: № 5.

There is no Option shortcut for № on the US Mac layout and no classic Windows Alt code below 256. Your options:

• Windows: use the Word Alt+X method in the table above, press Windows key + period and browse the Symbols tab, or copy it from this page.
• Mac: press Control+Command+Space to open the Character Viewer and search “numero.”
• Phones: copy and paste, or set up a text replacement such as “nmr” → № in your keyboard settings.
• LaTeX: the textcomp package provides \textnumero.