A practical introduction to code points, character names, blocks and symbol compatibility.
Code points identify characters
Unicode assigns an integer code point to every encoded character. U+ notation writes that value in hexadecimal, such as U+2192 for a rightwards arrow.
Characters and glyphs are different
Unicode defines encoded characters; fonts provide the glyph designs used to display them. That is why the same symbol can look different while remaining the same character.
Use reference data carefully
Names, categories and blocks should come from authoritative Unicode data rather than being inferred from appearance alone.
Related tools and guides
Last updated September 2026 · Editorial policy · How we verify Unicode claims