How to Type the Pipe Symbol (|), the Vertical Bar

How-To Guides · 2 min read · Published October 25, 2026

Quick answer: on US and UK keyboards press Shift+\. On US keyboards the \ key is above Enter; on UK keyboards it is left of Z. On a German Windows keyboard press AltGr+<. On any Windows PC, Alt+124 on the numeric keypad types |.

Quick reference: every method

Every Alt code below is verified against the real Windows code pages — where none exists we say so, rather than list one that won’t work.

Where | is

If the key types something else, your layout setting may not match your keyboard; see keyboard symbols. No keypad? Use Win+. → Symbols, or copy | from this page.

Pipe | vs broken bar ¦

The vertical line | (U+007C) is the one on your keyboard and the one used in code. The broken bar ¦ (U+00A6, Alt+0166) is a separate character with a gap in the middle. Some older keyboards print the broken-bar shape on the key even though the key types |, which causes confusion. On UK keyboards the broken bar is typed with AltGr and the ` key. In code, shell commands and Markdown, always use |.

What | is used for

• Terminals: dir | more or ls | grep txt sends one command's output to the next, which is where the name "pipe" comes from.
• Programming: | and || mean "or" in many languages.
• Markdown tables: columns are separated with |.
• Maths: absolute value |x| and "divides" (a | b).
• Titles and menus: a separator, as in "Home | About | Contact".

Phones

iPhone: 123 → #+=. Gboard: ?123 → =\<.

Related: backslash \ (on the same key), and our vertical line page.

Frequently asked questions