How to Type ì (I with grave) on Excel

Q: What is the Unicode code for ì?

U+00EC. In HTML it is &igrave;.

Published August 8, 2026, 2 min read

ì is i with grave, a letter used in Italian, Vietnamese, Mandarin Pinyin and Yoruba. On Excel, the quickest way to get it is =UNICHAR(236). This guide covers every method that works, including the capital Ì and fixes for common problems.

ì on Excel: =UNICHAR(236)

Ì on Excel: =UNICHAR(204)

Or copy it:

Method 1: UNICHAR formula

Type =UNICHAR(236) in a cell to get ì. To check a letter, =UNICODE("ì") returns 236. Both work in Excel 2013 and later and in Google Sheets.

Method 2: CHAR formula on Windows

=CHAR(236) also returns ì on Windows, because it uses the Windows-1252 code page. On a Mac CHAR uses a different code page, so prefer UNICHAR.

Method 3: Keyboard methods inside a cell

Double-click the cell, then use Alt+0236 on Windows or Option+`, then I on a Mac.

Method 4: Find and replace accented text

Use =SUBSTITUTE(A1,"ì","i") to strip this accent from a column, for example when cleaning names for an email system that does not accept accents.

How to type the capital Ì

The uppercase form works the same way with Shift added where a letter is typed.

UNICHAR formula

Type =UNICHAR(204) in a cell to get Ì. To check a letter, =UNICODE("Ì") returns 204. Both work in Excel 2013 and later and in Google Sheets.

CHAR formula on Windows

=CHAR(204) also returns Ì on Windows, because it uses the Windows-1252 code page. On a Mac CHAR uses a different code page, so prefer UNICHAR.

About the letter ì

ì is Unicode U+00EC, named LATIN SMALL LETTER I WITH GRAVE. It is used in Italian, Vietnamese, Mandarin Pinyin and Yoruba. A short line slanting down to the right. French uses it on à, è and ù, Italian on final stressed vowels (città), Catalan and Portuguese for vowel quality, and Vietnamese and Pinyin for a falling tone. See the ì character page for every code and shortcut.

Troubleshooting

UNICHAR is not available in Excel 2010 and earlier.
CSV files saved as plain "CSV" may lose accents. Save as "CSV UTF-8".
If accents show as question marks after import, set the file origin to 65001: Unicode (UTF-8) in the import wizard.

Frequently asked questions

What is the shortcut for ì on Excel?

=UNICHAR(236).

Can I just copy and paste ì?

Yes. Click the copy button above, then paste with Ctrl+V on Windows and Chromebook, Cmd+V on a Mac, or touch and hold and choose Paste on a phone.

What is the Unicode code for ì?

U+00EC. In HTML it is ì.

Related guides

All accent shortcuts for Excel