Polish adds nine letters: ą, ć, ę, ł, ń, ó, ś, ź and ż. Most Polish speakers use the Polish (Programmers) layout, where Alt Gr plus the base letter types the accented version.
How to type Polish letters on Windows
Alt codes
Hold Alt, type the code on the numeric keypad with Num Lock on, then release Alt. The number row above the letters does not work.
| Letter | Alt code | Capital | Alt code |
|---|---|---|---|
Alt+0243 | Alt+0211 |
ą ć ę ł ń ś ź ż have no classic Alt code. Use the layout, the symbol panel, or Alt+X in Word for those.
Add the Polish keyboard layout
Go to Settings → Time & Language → Language & region, add Polish (or open Options under your language and add a keyboard), and choose Polish (Programmers). Switch layouts with Win+Space. The Polish (Programmers) layout is a normal QWERTY where AltGr plus the base letter types the Polish form: AltGr+A for ą, AltGr+C for ć, AltGr+E for ę, AltGr+L for ł, AltGr+N for ń, AltGr+O for ó, AltGr+S for ś, AltGr+X for ź and AltGr+Z for ż.
US-International dead keys
If you would rather keep a US layout, add United States-International. Press the accent key, release it, then press the letter:
- ' then the letter for the acute (gives ć)
- AltGr+O gives ó directly
Emoji and symbol panel
Press Win+., open the Symbols tab (Ω) and choose Latin symbols, or search the letter's name. Works in every app and needs no numpad.
On a Mac the Polish Pro layout works the same way with Option plus the base letter.
How to type Polish letters on a Mac
Press and hold
Hold a letter key for a second and a menu of accented forms appears; press the number under the one you want. On the English keyboard this covers ć ę ł ń ó ś ź ż, but not ą.
- Hold C for ç ć č
- Hold E for è é ê ë ē ė ę
- Hold L for ł
- Hold N for ñ ń
- Hold O for ô ö ò ó œ ø ō õ
- Hold S for ß ś š
- Hold Z for ž ź ż
Option dead keys
Press the Option combination, release it, then press the letter:
- Option+E, O gives ó
The ogonek and dot above are not on the US layout. Add ABC Extended (System Settings → Keyboard → Input Sources), which adds dead keys: Option+M for the ogonek, Option+W for the dot above.
Polish input source and Character Viewer
For regular Polish typing add Polish Pro under System Settings → Keyboard → Input Sources and switch with Control+Space. For a one-off letter, press Control+⌘+Space to open the Character Viewer, search the letter's name and double-click it.
The ł has a stroke, not an accent, so it cannot be typed with a dead key on a standard layout.
How to type Polish letters on iPhone, iPad and Android
- Press and hold the base letter (C, E, L, N, O, S, Z).
- A pop-up shows the accented forms, including ć ę ł ń ó.
- Slide your finger onto the one you want and release. Gboard on Android works the same way.
To add the keyboard on iPhone go to Settings → General → Keyboard → Keyboards → Add New Keyboard → Polish and switch with the globe key. On Android open Gboard → Settings → Languages → Add keyboard → Polish. For a letter you type often, save a shortcut under Text Replacement (iPhone) or the Personal dictionary (Gboard).
Word, Excel and Google Docs
Microsoft Word
Word has built-in accent shortcuts. Press the combination, release it, then type the letter:
- Ctrl+', o gives ó
For any letter, type its Unicode hex code and press Alt+X: 0105 → ą, 0107 → ć, 0119 → ę, 0142 → ł, and so on (the table above has every code). Insert → Symbol → More Symbols lists them under Latin-1 Supplement and Latin Extended-A. With AutoCorrect (File → Options → Proofing) you can make Word replace a code of your choosing, such as a~, with ą as you type.
Excel and Google Sheets
Alt codes and paste work in cells. For a formula, use =UNICHAR(261) in Excel or =CHAR(261) in Google Sheets to get ą.
Google Docs
Use Insert → Special characters and search the letter's name, or draw it in the sketch box. Docs accepts Alt codes on Windows and Option dead keys on a Mac, and Tools → Preferences → Substitutions can auto-replace a short code with the letter.
Polish punctuation and other marks
Beyond the letters, Polish text uses „ (low opening quote), ” (closing quote) and zł (złoty). Click to copy; the codes work the same way as for letters.
| Mark | Name | Unicode | Alt code | HTML |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low opening quote | U+201E | — | „ | |
| Closing quote | U+201D | — | ” | |
| Złoty | U+007A | — | z |
Frequently asked questions
How do I type Polish letters on an English keyboard? +
On Windows, hold Alt and type the code on the numeric keypad (for example Alt+0243 for ó). On a Mac, iPhone or Android, press and hold the base letter and pick ć, ę, ł, ń from the pop-up. Or click any letter on this page to copy it.
Which keyboard layout do I add for Polish? +
Windows: Polish (Programmers). Mac: Polish Pro. iPhone and iPad: Polish. Android (Gboard): Polish. The Polish (Programmers) layout is a normal QWERTY where AltGr plus the base letter types the Polish form: AltGr+A for ą, AltGr+C for ć, AltGr+E for ę, AltGr+L for ł, AltGr+N for ń, AltGr+O for ó, AltGr+S for ś, AltGr+X for ź and AltGr+Z for ż..
Do Polish letters have Alt codes? +
1 of the 9 do: ó Alt+0243. Alt codes need Num Lock on and a numeric keypad. The rest (ą ć ę ł ń ś ź ż) are outside the Windows-1252 code page, so use Alt + X in Word or the symbol panel.
How do I type Polish accents in Microsoft Word? +
Word has accent shortcuts: press the combination, release, then type the letter. Ctrl+', o gives ó. For any letter, type its Unicode hex code and press Alt + X (0105 becomes ą), or use Insert → Symbol.
Will copied Polish letters work in Word, Google Docs and social media? +
Yes. They are standard Unicode characters, so they paste as real text into any app that supports Unicode, which includes Word, Docs, Excel, WhatsApp, Instagram and email.