Why does Excel show Ã— instead of × in my CSV?

Excel opened a UTF-8 file that has no byte order mark and assumed Windows-1252. Write the mark into the file and Excel picks up UTF-8 on its own: in Python that means `open(path, 'w', encoding='utf-8-sig')`. For a file you already have, don't double-click it. Import it through Excel's text import with the file origin set to UTF-8, and 30 × 40 cm comes through intact.

Can I use × instead of * in a formula?

No. Spreadsheet formulas and programming languages accept only * as the multiplication operator, so =3×4 or price × qty just fails. × is for showing multiplication to people. If formulas reach you from documents or copied web pages, replace × with * before you evaluate them, and keep × for labels and output.

Should there be spaces around × in 1920 × 1080?

Yes, when × sits between two numbers you space it like a plus sign: 3 × 4, 1920 × 1080, 2 × 4 m. When it's a multiplier attached to one number, close it up, as in 2× speed or 10× zoom. Use a non-breaking space before the × if a line break between the two numbers would look odd.

Should I write × or · for multiplication?

Use × for dimensions and for numbers written out, like 2.5 × 10³. The middle dot · (byte 183) is the usual choice between unit symbols, as in N·m or kW·h, and German schools teach it for everyday multiplication too. In vector math they aren't interchangeable at all: a × b is the cross product, while a · b is the dot product.

What's the difference between ╫ and ╪?

It's which line is doubled. ╪ (216) carries a double row line ═ (205) through a single column │ (179), the piece you need under a header row ruled in double. ╫ is that same crossing turned 90 degrees. Where two double lines cross, use ╬ (206), and where two single lines cross, ┼ (197).

ASCII 215

Multiplication signBox cross junction, double vertical

ASCII 215 is × on Windows and ╫ in old DOS.

× (Multiplication Sign) is byte 215 in Windows-1252, Unicode U+00D7. It's the times sign in 3 × 4 and the by in dimensions like 1920 × 1080. Parsers trip over it because it looks like the letter x. A pattern like (\d+)x(\d+) that reads screen resolutions or image sizes won't match 1920×1080, and a search for 4x4 won't find 4×4, so accept both or normalize × to x first. Used as a close icon on a button, it gets announced as a multiplication sign or times, so give the button an aria-label. Code page 437 had no ×, and code page 850 added it at 158. In UTF-8 it's C3 97, which misreads as Ã followed by an em dash. The HTML entity is ×.

╫ (Double Vertical, Single Horizontal) is byte 215 in code page 437, the original IBM PC character set, and maps to Unicode U+256B. It's the crossing where a double column line ║ (186) passes through a single row line ─ (196). In a single-line table with one double divider, the divider starts at ╥ (210) on the top edge, crosses each row line at ╫ and ends at ╨ (208) on the bottom. Code page 850 put Î on this byte, so every crossing along the divider becomes a capital I with a circumflex when the file is read as 850. In UTF-8 it's E2 95 AB, and the HTML entity is &boxVh;.

Math SymbolBox Drawing

Technical Details

Code Example

</>

#include <stdio.h>

int main(void) {
    /* On Windows (code page 1252) byte 215 is ×.
       Modern terminals expect UTF-8, so print the code point, not the byte. */
    printf("\u00D7\n");   /* UTF-8: C3 97 */

    unsigned char b = 215;         /* the raw Windows-1252 byte */
    printf("%d 0x%02X\n", b, b);    /* 215 0xD7 */
    return 0;
}

Code Example

</>

#include <stdio.h>

int main(void) {
    /* Byte 215 is ╫ only on a console using code page 437
       (chcp 437 on Windows, or DOSBox). On a UTF-8 terminal the
       lone byte 0xD7 is invalid and prints as garbage, often �. */
    putchar(215);

    /* char is signed on x86, so a plain char holding 0xD7 is -41.
       Use unsigned char when you compare or index by byte value. */
    char c = (char)215;
    unsigned char u = 215;
    printf("\n%d %d\n", c, u);   /* -41 215 */

    /* Portable: print the Unicode character as UTF-8 instead. */
    printf("\u256B\n");          /* E2 95 AB */
    return 0;
}

How to Type It

Windows: Hold Alt and type 0215 on the numeric keypad, with Num Lock on. The leading zero picks the Windows code page. No numeric keypad? In Word, type 00D7 and press Alt+X.
Mac: Press Control+Command+Space to open the Character Viewer, then search for "multiplication sign".
Linux: In GNOME, or any desktop running IBus, press Ctrl+Shift+U, type d7, then Space. With a Compose key set up, press Compose, x, x.
Phone: iPhone: tap the character at the top of this page to copy it. Android (Gboard): tap ?123, then =\< and tap ×.

How to Type It

Windows: Hold Alt and type 215 on the numeric keypad, with no leading zero. US PCs insert ╫, but PCs set to code page 850, common in Western Europe, insert Î. No numeric keypad? In Word, type 256B and press Alt+X.
Mac: Press Control+Command+Space to open the Character Viewer, then search for "box drawings vertical double and horizontal single".
Linux: In GNOME, or any desktop running IBus, press Ctrl+Shift+U, type 256b, then Space.
Phone: Phone keyboards have no key for it. Tap the character at the top of this page to copy it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Excel opened a UTF-8 file that has no byte order mark and assumed Windows-1252. Write the mark into the file and Excel picks up UTF-8 on its own: in Python that means `open(path, 'w', encoding='utf-8-sig')`. For a file you already have, don't double-click it. Import it through Excel's text import with the file origin set to UTF-8, and 30 × 40 cm comes through intact.
No. Spreadsheet formulas and programming languages accept only * as the multiplication operator, so =3×4 or price × qty just fails. × is for showing multiplication to people. If formulas reach you from documents or copied web pages, replace × with * before you evaluate them, and keep × for labels and output.
Yes, when × sits between two numbers you space it like a plus sign: 3 × 4, 1920 × 1080, 2 × 4 m. When it's a multiplier attached to one number, close it up, as in 2× speed or 10× zoom. Use a non-breaking space before the × if a line break between the two numbers would look odd.
Use × for dimensions and for numbers written out, like 2.5 × 10³. The middle dot · (byte 183) is the usual choice between unit symbols, as in N·m or kW·h, and German schools teach it for everyday multiplication too. In vector math they aren't interchangeable at all: a × b is the cross product, while a · b is the dot product.

Frequently Asked Questions

It's which line is doubled. ╪ (216) carries a double row line ═ (205) through a single column │ (179), the piece you need under a header row ruled in double. ╫ is that same crossing turned 90 degrees. Where two double lines cross, use ╬ (206), and where two single lines cross, ┼ (197).

ASCII 215

Multiplication signBox cross junction, double vertical

ASCII 215 is × on Windows and ╫ in old DOS.

Math Symbol

Box Drawing

#include <stdio.h>

int main(void) {

/* On Windows (code page 1252) byte 215 is ×.

Modern terminals expect UTF-8, so print the code point, not the byte. */

printf("\u00D7\n"); /* UTF-8: C3 97 */

unsigned char b = 215; /* the raw Windows-1252 byte */

printf("%d 0x%02X\n", b, b); /* 215 0xD7 */

return 0;

}

#include <stdio.h>

int main(void) {

/* Byte 215 is ╫ only on a console using code page 437

(chcp 437 on Windows, or DOSBox). On a UTF-8 terminal the

lone byte 0xD7 is invalid and prints as garbage, often �. */

putchar(215);

/* char is signed on x86, so a plain char holding 0xD7 is -41.

Use unsigned char when you compare or index by byte value. */

char c = (char)215;

unsigned char u = 215;

printf("\n%d %d\n", c, u); /* -41 215 */

/* Portable: print the Unicode character as UTF-8 instead. */

printf("\u256B\n"); /* E2 95 AB */

return 0;

}