Option key shortcuts
These work in any application on the US or ABC layout without installing anything. Click any letter to copy it.
| Letter | Name | Mac shortcut | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alpha | Option + A on Greek layout | Angles, coefficients, significance level | |
| Beta | Character Viewer | Regression coefficients, beta particles | |
| Gamma | Character Viewer | Gamma rays, surface tension | |
| Delta (small) | Character Viewer | Small change, partial derivative | |
| Delta (capital) | Option + J | Difference, change in a quantity | |
| Epsilon | Character Viewer | Error term, small quantity | |
| Theta | Character Viewer | Angles, phase | |
| Lambda | Character Viewer | Wavelength, eigenvalues | |
| Mu | Option + M | Micro prefix, population mean | |
| Pi | Option + P | The constant, product notation | |
| Sigma (small) | Character Viewer | Standard deviation, stress | |
| Sigma (capital) | Option + W | Summation | |
| Phi | Character Viewer | Golden ratio, magnetic flux | |
| Psi | Character Viewer | Wave function | |
| Omega (small) | Character Viewer | Angular frequency | |
| Omega (capital) | Option + Z | Ohms, resistance | |
| Partial derivative | Option + D | Partial differentiation | |
| Increment | Option + J | Mathematical delta operator |
Note the pattern in that table. macOS gives Option shortcuts to the Greek letters that double asunits and operators — mu for micro, omega for ohms, pi for the constant, capital sigma for summation — and not to the alphabet as an alphabet. That is why alpha, beta and theta have no shortcut despite being far more commonly needed in writing.
The Greek keyboard, if you need more than five
Open System Settings, Keyboard,Input Sources, Edit, then the plus button, and addGreek. Switch with the input menu in the menu bar or withControl + Space.
The mapping is phonetic and takes minutes to learn: a gives α, b gives β, g gives γ, d gives δ, p gives π, s gives σ, f gives φ, w gives ω. Capitals are the same keys with Shift.
Two letters break the pattern and catch everyone. Theta is on u, and final sigma ς is on w while medial sigma σ is ons. If you are writing actual Greek rather than notation, the distinction between the two sigmas matters.
Worth adding once you need more than about five letters regularly. Below that, Character Viewer is faster than the context switch.
Character Viewer for one-offs
Press Control + Command + Space, type the letter's name in English — theta, lambda, xi — and double-click the result to insert it.
The window remembers recent characters, which makes the second and subsequent uses much faster than the first. If you use the same six letters constantly, they will sit in Frequently Used and you will never search again.
You can also add Greek to the sidebar permanently: click the small settings icon at the top left of the expanded window, choose Customize List, and tick Greek under European Scripts.
Pages, Keynote and Numbers
All three accept the methods above unchanged. What they add is an equation editor:Insert, Equation accepts LaTeX, so \alpha becomes α and \Omega becomes Ω. For anything with subscripts or fractions, the equation editor is the right tool and the Option key is not.
One caution on autocorrect. Pages will capitalise a lone Greek letter at the start of a sentence the same way it capitalises a Latin one, which silently turns σ into Σ and changes the meaning. Turn off automatic capitalisation in Pages preferences if you write notation in body text.
Related
Every letter above has its own page with the Windows Alt code, the HTML entity and the CSS escape: see the Greek letters hub.
For Greek in Microsoft Word, where the method is completely different, seeGreek letters in Word. For the rest of the Option key map, seeMac special characters. If Option is not producing anything at all, start withOption key not typing symbols.