Caret (^) is the Unicode character at U+005E in the Basic Latin block (official name: CIRCUMFLEX ACCENT). It is the familiar ASCII key used for exponents, regex anchors, XOR in some languages, and shortcut notation.
Remember
Character ^
Unicode U+005E
Hex entity ^
Decimal ^
Named entity ^
CSS escape \5E
All of these produce the same glyph: ^. Prefer typing ^ directly in UTF-8 HTML; use ^ or numeric forms when you want an explicit entity.
Reference
Quick Reference
One table for every form you will actually use.
Form
Code
Where it goes
Direct character
^
HTML text (UTF-8)
Named entity
^
HTML markup
Hex entity
^
HTML markup
Decimal entity
^
HTML markup
CSS escape
\5E
Stylesheet content
When to use which
Situation
Use
Everyday typing
Type ^ on the keyboard
Explicit entity in markup
^, ^, or ^
Generated text via ::before / ::after
content: "\5E"
Proofreading insertion mark
Use ‸ (U+2038)
Spacing modifier ˆ
Use ˆ (U+02C6) / ˆ
See it
Live Preview
Caret rendered in common writing contexts.
Inline textPower: x^2
Large glyph^
Compared^ ˆ ‸
Monospaceregex: ^start
With entitiesNamed: ^ | Hex: ^ | Decimal: ^
Code
Complete HTML Example
One page that shows Caret with the named entity, hex entity, decimal entity, CSS escape, and a typed character. Use View Output or open the live editor.
Named + Hex + Decimal + CSS + Typed
Five ways to produce ^ in a single document.
html
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Caret (^) in HTML</title>
<style>
#point::after {
content: "\5E";
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<p>Caret using Named Entity: ^</p>
<p>Caret using Hex Code: ^</p>
<p>Caret using HTML Code: ^</p>
<p id="point">Caret using CSS Entity: </p>
<p>Typed directly: ^</p>
</body>
</html>
One line:U+005E → type ^ or ^ / ^ / ^ / CSS \5E.
Frequently Asked Questions
Type ^ directly, or use ^ (hex), ^ (decimal), ^ (named), or the CSS escape \5E in the content property. All render ^. UTF-8 files can paste ^ as well.
U+005E (hex 5E, decimal 94). Unicode names it CIRCUMFLEX ACCENT. It belongs to the Basic Latin block.
Yes. ^ maps to U+005E. Prefer typing ^ in hand-written HTML; ^ or numeric forms are useful when you want an explicit entity.
^ (U+005E) is the common ASCII caret/circumflex. ˆ (U+02C6) is a spacing modifier letter. ‸ (U+2038) is the proofreading caret mark.
HTML entities (^, ^, or ^) go in markup. The CSS escape \5E is used in stylesheets (usually in the content property of ::before/::after). Both render ^.
Use it for exponents (x^2), regex anchors, bitwise XOR in some languages, and keyboard shortcuts. Use ‸ for proofreading insertion marks, and combining circumflex for accented letters.
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Did you know?
Caret is Unicode U+005E (decimal 94) — official name CIRCUMFLEX ACCENT in Basic Latin. HTML’s named reference is ^. It is not modifier letter circumflex (U+02C6 ˆ) or proofreading caret (U+2038 ‸).
