What + means
Add, join, or positive. Attached to a number, as in +3, it marks a positive value; spaced, as in 2 + 10, it is the addition operator.
Why did my plus sign turn into a space?
Form-encoded URL queries read + as a space. Write a literal plus as %2B: C%2B%2B decodes to C++.
Neutral in equations; casual shorthand in messages.
Between names, + can imply more than “and.”
What it means when someone sends it to you
3 readingsBetween names
Joins people; can suggest romance.
Reply: +1
Agreement with the previous comment.
Before a phone number
International format; a country code follows.
Don't confuse it with
1Questions people ask
1Why does + show as a box on some devices?
Because that device's fonts have no glyph for it. The character is still correct and still copies correctly — the box is a missing glyph, not a broken character.
How to type +
Windows (Word)
Alt+XType 002B, then Alt+X to get +.
Windows
Win+Rrun charmap for the full table, or use the emoji picker's Ω symbols tab (Win + .).
macOS
Control+Command+SpaceOpen the character viewer and search “plus sign”.
Linux
Ctrl+Shift+UType 002b, then Enter or Space.
HTML
+CSS
\002BKeyboard
Shift and = on a US layout; numeric keypads have a separate + key.
Phone dialer
Long-press 0 to get +.
Codes and encoding1 code points
HTML decimal
+
HTML hex
+
CSS content
content: "\002B";
Each escape is closed by the next backslash; a trailing space is needed before a literal hex digit.
URL encoded
%2B
1
On screen
1
Code points
1
JS .length
1
UTF-8 bytes
A visible symbol can contain several code points. JS .length counts UTF-16 units; UTF-8 counts bytes.