How to Type ý (Y with acute) on Excel

Q: What is the Unicode code for ý?

U+00FD. In HTML it is &yacute;.

Published August 11, 2026, 2 min read

The letter ý does not have its own key on an English keyboard, but Excel still makes it easy to type. Use =UNICHAR(253), or pick one of the other methods in this guide. ý appears in Czech, Slovak, Icelandic and Vietnamese.

ý on Excel: =UNICHAR(253)

Ý on Excel: =UNICHAR(221)

Or copy it:

Method 1: UNICHAR formula

Type =UNICHAR(253) in a cell to get ý. To check a letter, =UNICODE("ý") returns 253. Both work in Excel 2013 and later and in Google Sheets.

Method 2: CHAR formula on Windows

=CHAR(253) also returns ý 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+0253 on Windows or Unicode Hex Input (Option + 00FD) on a Mac.

Method 4: Find and replace accented text

Use =SUBSTITUTE(A1,"ý","y") 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 Ý

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

UNICHAR formula

Type =UNICHAR(221) in a cell to get Ý. To check a letter, =UNICODE("Ý") returns 221. Both work in Excel 2013 and later and in Google Sheets.

CHAR formula on Windows

=CHAR(221) also returns Ý 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 ý

ý is Unicode U+00FD, named LATIN SMALL LETTER Y WITH ACUTE. It is used in Czech, Slovak, Icelandic, Vietnamese and Faroese. A short line slanting up to the right. It marks stress in Spanish (canción), a closed vowel in French (été), vowel length in Czech, Hungarian and Irish, and a rising tone in Vietnamese and Pinyin. See the ý 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 ý on Excel?

=UNICHAR(253).

Can I just copy and paste ý?

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 ý?

U+00FD. In HTML it is ý.

Related guides

All accent shortcuts for Excel