Insert or Type a Check Mark or Tick Mark Symbol in Microsoft Word (with Shortcuts)
by Avantix Learning Team | Updated April 30, 2023
Applies to: Microsoft®Word® 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021 or 365 (Windows)
You can insert or type a check mark or tick mark symbol in a Word document in several ways. Check marks can be inserted using built-in commands or keyboard shortcuts. It's important to note that there is a difference between inserting a static check mark and inserting a clickable check box which is typically used in a Word form.
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In this article, we'll review 5 ways to insert a check mark symbol in a Word document:
- Insert check marks as bullets
- Use the Insert Symbol command
- Add and use a custom Word keyboard shortcut
- Add and use an AutoCorrect shortcut
- Use an Alt code shortcut by pressing Alt and then entering a number sequence
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1. Insert a check mark by inserting bullets
If you want to insert a check mark at the beginning of one or more paragraphs, you can apply custom bullets using the Wingdings font (or a similar font).
To apply check marks as custom bullets to paragraphs:
- Select the paragraph(s) to which you want to add check marks.
- Click the Home tab in the Ribbon.
- In the Paragraph group, click the arrow beside Bullets. A drop-down menu appears.
- Click Define New Bullet. A dialog box appears.
- Click Symbol. A dialog box appears.
- Select Wingdings from the Font drop-down menu. Alternatively, you can select another font such as Wingdings 2 or Segoe UI Symbol.
- Click the desired check mark.
- Click OK.
- Click Font. A Font dialog box appears.
- Select the desired font color and size. This dialog box offers the same options as the regular Font dialog box.
- Click OK twice.
The check marks will be added at the beginning of the paragraph(s).
In the Define New Bullet dialog box (below), you can select Symbol, Font or Picture:
The following characters appear when you select Wingdings as the Symbol font for bullets:
In the Define New Bullet dialog box, you can select Picture and then navigate to a picture you want to use as a bullet and then double-click it.
2. Insert a check mark using Insert Symbol
If you want to add a check mark in a line of text (or at the end of a line of text), you can use Insert Symbol.
To insert a check mark using Insert Symbol in the Ribbon in Word:
- Position the cursor in the Word document where you want to insert a check mark.
- Click the Insert tab in the Ribbon.
- In the Symbols group, click Symbol. A drop-down menu appears.
- Click More Symbols. A dialog box appears.
- If necessary, click the Symbols tab.
- Select Wingdings from the Font drop-down menu. Alternatively, you can select another font such as Wingdings 2 or Segoe UI Symbol.
- Scroll through the list of symbols until you find the check mark symbol you want to use and then click it.
- Click Insert.
- Click Close.
Once the check mark has been inserted, you can change its size or color using the Home tab in the Ribbon or by right-clicking and selecting formatting options from the mini-toolbar.
In the example below, Wingdings is selected in the Symbol dialog box:
3. Insert a check mark using a custom Word keyboard shortcut
If you insert a check mark frequently, you can create your own keyboard shortcut for the check mark symbol.
To create a keyboard shortcut for a check mark:
- Position the cursor in a Word document.
- Click the Insert tab in the Ribbon.
- In the Symbols group, click Symbol. A drop-down menu appears.
- Click More Symbols. A dialog box appears.
- If necessary, click the Symbols tab.
- Select Wingdings from the Font drop-down menu. Alternatively, you can select another font such as Wingdings 2 or Segoe UI Symbol.
- Scroll through the list of symbols until you find the check mark symbol you want to use and then click it.
- Click Shortcut. A dialog box appears.
- Click in the box below Assign New Shortcut key.
- Press the keys you want to assign (such as Ctrl + Alt + M). Don't type any text, just press the keys. Be careful not to override a useful built-in shortcut such as Ctrl + C.
- Click Assign. Typically the location for these shortcuts is the Normal (or default) template.
- Click Close twice.
Test the shortcut in your document by pressing the assigned keys.
The Customize Keyboard dialog box appears as follows:
Since these shortcuts are typically saved in the Normal template, when you exit Word, if you are prompted to save the Normal template, click Yes.
4. Insert a check mark using an AutoCorrect shortcut
You can also insert a check mark automatically using AutoCorrect.
To set up an AutoCorrect entry for a check mark:
- Position the cursor in a Word document.
- Click the Insert tab in the Ribbon.
- In the Symbols group, click Symbol. A drop-down menu appears.
- Click More Symbols. A dialog box appears.
- If necessary, click the Symbols tab.
- Select Wingdings from the Font drop-down menu. Alternatively, you can select another font such as Wingdings 2 or Segoe UI Symbol.
- Scroll through the list of symbols until you find the check mark symbol you want to use and then click it.
- Click AutoCorrect. A dialog box appears.
- In the Replace box, enter the name of the entry (such as cm1).
- Click Add.
- Click OK.
- Click Close.
To insert the entry in the document, type the entry (such as cm1) and then press the Spacebar.
The AutoCorrect dialog box appears as follows:
Since these shortcuts are typically saved in the Normal template, when you exit Word, you should be prompted to save it.
5. Insert a check mark using an Alt keyboard shortcut
You can press the Alt key in combination with numbers on the numeric keypad to insert a check mark symbol.
To insert a check mark symbol in a Word document using Alt:
- Position the cursor where you want to insert the check mark symbol.
- Press Alt + 0252 or Alt + 0254 on the numeric keypad. If the sequence doesn't work, press NumLock on the numeric keypad. Word will insert a different character.
- Select the character, click the Home tab in the Ribbon and select Wingdings from the Font drop-down menu.
If you want to create clickable check boxes, you could create a Word form using controls or create a dynamic form using Microsoft Forms.
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