Clockwise Open Circle Arrow (↻) is the Unicode character at U+21BB in the Arrows block (official name: CLOCKWISE OPEN CIRCLE ARROW). It is a circular clockwise arrow used for refresh, redo, and rotate cues in text and simple UI labels.
Remember
Character ↻
Unicode U+21BB
Hex entity ↻
Decimal ↻
Named entity ↻ / ↻
CSS escape \21BB
All of these produce the same glyph: ↻. Prefer ↻ or a typed ↻ in hand-written HTML; use numeric forms when generating markup.
Clockwise open circle arrow rendered in common writing contexts.
Inline text↻ Refresh page
Large glyph↻
Compared↻ ⟳ ↷
Monospaceaction: ↻ redo
With entitiesNamed: ↻ | Hex: ↻ | Decimal: ↻
Code
Complete HTML Example
One page that shows Clockwise Open Circle Arrow 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>Clockwise Open Circle Arrow (↻) in HTML</title>
<style>
#point::after {
content: "\21BB";
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<p>Clockwise Open Circle Arrow using Named Entity: ↻</p>
<p>Clockwise Open Circle Arrow using Hex Code: ↻</p>
<p>Clockwise Open Circle Arrow using HTML Code: ↻</p>
<p id="point">Clockwise Open Circle Arrow using CSS Entity: </p>
<p>Typed directly: ↻</p>
</body>
</html>
Clockwise Open Circle Arrow using Named Entity: ↻
Clockwise Open Circle Arrow using Hex Code: ↻
Clockwise Open Circle Arrow using HTML Code: ↻
Clockwise Open Circle Arrow using CSS Entity: ↻
Typed directly: ↻
How It Works
1. Named:↻ (alias ↻) is the HTML5 named reference for U+21BB → ↻.
2. Hex:U+21BB → ↻ in HTML. Same glyph as the named form.
3. Decimal: same code point as 8635 → ↻. Same result as hex.
4. CSS: use \21BB in content (not an HTML entity). #point::after appends that ↻ after the paragraph text.
5. Typed ↻: fine in UTF-8 pages. All five lines show the same glyph.
Pitfalls & Tips
Common mistakes when working with Clockwise Open Circle Arrow entities.
Named
Use ↻
↻ and ↻ both work. Always end with ;.
CSS vs HTML
Do not mix escapes
\21BB belongs in CSS. ↻ / ↻ / ↻ belong in HTML.
↻ vs ⟳
Different characters
↻ is U+21BB (open). Gapped ⟳ is U+27F3.
A11y
Do not rely on the glyph alone
Pair ↻ with text (or an accessible name) so screen-reader users get the same meaning — e.g. “Refresh”.
Semicolon
End references
Always finish with ; — write ↻ and ↻, not bare forms.
Icons
Glyph vs SVG
For spinning loaders and polished buttons, an SVG icon is often clearer than a Unicode arrow alone.
Compatibility
Browser Support
Clockwise Open Circle Arrow (U+21BB) and its entity forms (↻, ↻, ↻, ↻, CSS \\21BB) are supported in all mainstream browsers.
✓ Universal support
Clockwise Open Circle Arrow (↻)
Type ↻, or encode with named, hex, decimal, or CSS escape — same glyph everywhere encoding is supported.
100%Browser coverage
Google ChromeSupported
Yes
Microsoft EdgeSupported
Yes
Mozilla FirefoxSupported
Yes
Apple SafariSupported
Yes
OperaSupported
Yes
Internet ExplorerAll versions
Yes
U+21BB / entitiesFull support
Bottom line: Prefer ↻ or a typed ↻ for open-circle refresh cues. Use decimal when generating markup, and \\21BB only inside CSS content.
Remember
Key Takeaways
Unicode: clockwise open circle arrow is U+21BB (decimal 8635).
Use ↻ (hex), ↻ (decimal), ↻ or ↻ (named), or the CSS escape \21BB in the content property. All render ↻. You can also paste ↻ directly when your file is UTF-8.
U+21BB (hex 21BB, decimal 8635). Unicode names it CLOCKWISE OPEN CIRCLE ARROW. It belongs to the Arrows block.
Yes. ↻ and ↻ are HTML5 named references for ↻. Numeric forms ↻ and ↻ also work.
Use it for refresh, redo, or rotate cues in UI copy and diagrams. Prefer SVG icons when you need precise size, color, or animation control.
HTML entities (↻, ↻, or ↻) go in markup. The CSS escape \21BB goes in stylesheet strings (usually content on ::before/::after).
↻ (U+21BB / ↻) is an open circle clockwise arrow. ⟳ (U+27F3) is a gapped circle arrow. ↷ (U+21B7 / ↷) is a top-semicircle clockwise arrow. They look related but are different characters.
🤔
Did you know?
Clockwise open circle arrow is Unicode U+21BB (decimal 8635) — official name CLOCKWISE OPEN CIRCLE ARROW in the Arrows block. HTML named references are ↻ and ↻. It is not the gapped circle arrow ⟳ (U+27F3) or the closed circle arrow ⥁ (U+2941).
