Right Single Quotation Mark (’) is the General Punctuation character at Unicode U+2019 (RIGHT SINGLE QUOTATION MARK). It is the closing (curly) single quote — and the usual typographic apostrophe in words like don’t.
Remember
Character ’
Unicode U+2019
Hex entity ’
Decimal ’
Named entity ’
CSS escape \2019
Not the same ' (U+0027) · ‘ (‘) · ” (”)
All of these produce the same glyph: ’. Prefer ’ when you want an explicit entity. Pair with ‘ to open the quote.
Using Hex Code: ‘Hello’
Using HTML Code: ‘Hello’
Using Named Entity: ‘Hello’
Using CSS Entity: ’
Contraction: don’t
How It Works
1. Hex:U+2019 → ’ in HTML. The browser turns it into ’ (shown here closing the quote after Hello).
2. Decimal: same code point as 8217 → ’. Same result as hex.
3. Named:’ is the HTML5 name for this character. Opening quotes use ‘.
4. CSS: use \2019 in content (not an HTML entity). #point::after appends that ’ after the paragraph text.
5. Contractions:don’t uses the right single quote as a typographic apostrophe.
Pitfalls & Tips
Common mistakes when working with Right Single Quotation Mark.
Look-alikes
’ ≠ ' ≠ ‘
’ closes a curly single quote. The ASCII ' is straight. ‘ opens the curly pair.
Pairing
Close with ’
Open with ‘. Mixing left and right marks looks wrong in polished typography.
Apostrophe
Contractions prefer ’
Words like don’t and it’s typically use the right single quote, not ‘.
CSS vs HTML
Do not mix escapes
\2019 belongs in CSS. ’ / ’ / ’ belong in HTML.
A11y
Quotes are usually fine alone
Screen readers treat curly quotes as punctuation. Prefer real quote characters over decorative substitutes.
Semicolon
End references
Always finish with ; — write ’, not &rsquo.
Compatibility
Browser Support
Right Single Quotation Mark (U+2019) and its entity forms (’, ’, ’, CSS \\2019) are supported in all modern browsers. Glyph coverage depends on the font.
✓ Universal encoding
Right Single Quotation Mark (’)
Encode with named, hex, decimal, or CSS escape — or type ’ directly in UTF-8 HTML.
100%Browser coverage
Google ChromeSupported
Yes
Microsoft EdgeSupported
Yes
Mozilla FirefoxSupported
Yes
Apple SafariSupported
Yes
OperaSupported
Yes
Internet ExplorerIE 9+
Yes*
U+2019 / ’Full support
Bottom line: Prefer ’ for readable HTML. Use \\2019 only inside CSS content.
Use ’ (named), ’ (hex), ’ (decimal), or the CSS escape \2019 in the content property. You can also type ’ directly in UTF-8 HTML.
U+2019 (RIGHT SINGLE QUOTATION MARK). Hex 2019, decimal 8217. It belongs to General Punctuation (U+2000–U+206F).
Yes. ’ is the HTML5 named entity (alias ’). You can also use ’ or ’.
Use it as the closing curly single quote, and as the typographic apostrophe in contractions (don’t, it’s). Pair it with ‘ for opening quotes. Prefer ’ for readable HTML.
HTML entities (’, ’, or ’) go in markup. The CSS escape \2019 is used in stylesheets (usually in the content property of ::before/::after). Both render ’.
The ASCII apostrophe ' (U+0027 / ') is straight. ‘ (U+2018) is the left (opening) curly single quote. ’ (U+2019) is the right (closing) curly single quote and the preferred typographic apostrophe.
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Did you know?
Right Single Quotation Mark is Unicode U+2019 (decimal 8217) — RIGHT SINGLE QUOTATION MARK. HTML5 provides ’ (alias ’). Prefer it for readable source. It closes curly single quotes and is the usual typographic apostrophe in contractions. Do not confuse it with the ASCII apostrophe ' / ' (U+0027) or the left form ‘ (U+2018).
