HTML Entity for Percent Sign (%)

Beginner
6 min read
Updated: Sep 2026
1 example
Unicode U+0025
HTML Entity for percentage (%) tutorial illustration
Definition

What Is the Percentage Entity?

Percentage uses the percent sign (%) — the Basic Latin character at Unicode U+0025 (PERCENT SIGN). It means 1/100 — used for discounts, statistics, and progress values. HTML5 provides the named entity %; you can also type % directly.

Remember
Character     %
Unicode       U+0025
Named entity  %
Hex entity    %  (or %)
Decimal       %
CSS escape    \0025

All of these produce the same glyph: %. Prefer typing % or % for readable HTML.

Reference

Quick Reference

One table for every form you will actually use.

FormCodeWhere it goes
Named entity%HTML markup
Hex entity%HTML markup (also %)
Decimal entity%HTML markup
Direct character%HTML text (UTF-8 default)
CSS escape\0025Stylesheet content (padded)

When to Use Which

SituationUse
Everyday HTML ratesType % or use %
Numeric entity required% or %
Generated text via ::before / ::aftercontent: "\0025"
Per thousand / per ten thousand‰ / ‱
URL query stringsPercent-encode as %25 (different from display)
See it

Live Preview

Percent sign rendered in common contexts.

Glyph %
Large glyph %
In a rate 25% off
With entities Named: % | Hex: % | Decimal: %
Related signs % (%) · ‰ (‰) · ‱ (‱)
Code

Complete HTML Example

One page that shows the percent sign with named, hex, decimal, direct, and CSS forms. Use View Output or open the live editor.

Named + Hex + Decimal + Direct + CSS

Five ways to produce % in a single document.

html
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="UTF-8">
  <title>Percent Sign (%) in HTML</title>
  <style>
    #point::after {
      content: "\0025";
    }
  </style>
</head>
<body>
  <p>Using Named Entity: &percnt;</p>
  <p>Using Hex Code: &#x25;</p>
  <p>Using Decimal: &#37;</p>
  <p>Using Direct Character: %</p>
  <p id="point">Using CSS Entity: </p>
  <p>Discount: 25&percnt; off</p>
</body>
</html>
Try It Yourself

How It Works

1. Named: &percnt; is the clearest named form for U+0025.

2. Hex: U+0025 → &#x25; (or &#x0025;) in HTML.

3. Decimal: same code point as 37 → &#37;. Same glyph.

4. Direct: type % in a UTF-8 file — it is safe in HTML text (unlike &, <, >).

5. CSS: use padded \0025 in content so the next character is not read as part of the hex escape.

Pitfalls & Tips

Common mistakes when working with this rate entity.

Scale

%, ‰, ‱

Per 100 → %. Per 1000 → &permil;. Per 10 000 → &pertenk;. Mixing scales misstates the rate.

URLs

Encoding ≠ display

In URLs, a literal % is written as %25. That is percent-encoding — different from showing % on the page.

CSS pad

Prefer \0025

A short \25 can absorb the next hex digit. Pad to four digits: \0025.

CSS vs HTML

Do not mix escapes

\0025 belongs in CSS. &percnt; / &#x25; / &#37; belong in HTML.

Semicolon

End references

Always finish with ; — write &percnt;, not &percnt.

Space

Locale spacing

Some locales put a space before % (e.g. 25 %). Follow the style your audience expects.

Compatibility

Browser Support

Percent sign (U+0025) and its entity forms (&percnt;, &#x25;, &#37;, CSS \\0025) are supported in all mainstream browsers.

✓ Universal support

Percent Sign (%)

Prefer typing % or &percnt;, or encode with hex, decimal, or CSS escape — same glyph everywhere.

100% Browser coverage
Google Chrome Supported
Yes
Microsoft Edge Supported
Yes
Mozilla Firefox Supported
Yes
Apple Safari Supported
Yes
Opera Supported
Yes
Internet Explorer All versions
Yes
U+0025 / entities Full support

Bottom line: Prefer typing % or &percnt; in HTML. Use &#x25; / &#37; when a numeric form is required, and padded \\0025 only inside CSS content.

Remember

Key Takeaways

  • Unicode: percent sign is U+0025 (decimal 37), Basic Latin.
  • HTML: type % or use &percnt; / &#x25; / &#37;.
  • CSS: use padded \0025 inside content.
  • Scale: 1/100 — not the same as ‰ or ‱.

One line: U+0025 → % / &percnt; / &#x25; / &#37; / CSS \0025.

Frequently Asked Questions

Use &percnt; (named), &#x25; or &#x0025; (hex), &#37; (decimal), type % in UTF-8, or the CSS escape \0025 in content. All render %.
U+0025 (PERCENT SIGN). Hex 25 / 0025, decimal 37. It belongs to Basic Latin and means 1/100.
Yes. HTML5 defines &percnt;. You can also use &#37; or &#x25;, or simply type % in a UTF-8 document — % is not a reserved HTML markup character like <, >, or &.
Use it for discounts, statistics, and progress values (e.g. 25%). Prefer typing % or &percnt; for readable source. For per thousand use &permil;; for per ten thousand use &pertenk;.
HTML entities (&percnt;, &#37;, or &#x25;) go in markup. The CSS escape \0025 is used in stylesheets (usually in the content property of ::before/::after). Prefer the padded form \0025 so the next digit is not swallowed.
% is per hundred. ‰ (U+2030, &permil;) is per thousand. ‱ (U+2031, &pertenk;) is per ten thousand. Do not mix the scales.

Did you know?

Percentage uses the percent sign (%) — Unicode U+0025 (decimal 37), PERCENT SIGN in Basic Latin. HTML5 provides &percnt;. You can also type % directly in UTF-8. One % equals 1/100. Related: &permil; (‰, per 1000) and &pertenk; (‱, per 10 000).

Next: Period

Learn the HTML entity for the period (full stop) — the next character in this entity sequence.

Period tutorial →

About the author

Mari Selvan M P
Mari Selvan M P 🔗

Developer, cloud engineer, and technical writer

  • Experience 12 years building web and cloud systems
  • Focus Full Stack Development, AWS, and Developer Education

I write practical tutorials so students and working developers can learn by doing—from databases and APIs to deployment on AWS.

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