The short version
- 1U+ notation is hexadecimal.
- 2UTF-8 and UTF-16 encode the same code points differently.
- 3Broken text usually signals a decoding mismatch, not a damaged font.
Read U+ notation
U+ notation expresses a code point in hexadecimal. The plus sign is notation, not arithmetic: U+00A9 is COPYRIGHT SIGN and U+1F680 is ROCKET. At least four hex digits are customary, with more used above U+FFFF.
A code point is not necessarily a byte and not necessarily a user-perceived character. That boundary matters whenever software slices strings, counts length, positions a cursor, or validates identifiers.
How the UTF encodings differ
UTF-8 uses one to four bytes for each Unicode scalar value and preserves ASCII as single bytes. UTF-16 uses one 16-bit code unit for Basic Multilingual Plane characters and a surrogate pair for supplementary characters. UTF-32 uses one 32-bit code unit per scalar value.
These formats encode the same repertoire. They differ in storage, indexing behavior, byte order concerns, and compatibility with surrounding protocols. Converting correctly does not change the text.
Diagnose mojibake
Mojibake appears when bytes written in one encoding are decoded as another. The cure is not to replace visible garbage one phrase at a time; identify where the incorrect interpretation happened and repair that boundary.
Use the converter on this site to inspect the UTF-8 bytes for a known character, then compare them with the bytes in the failing system. Preserve the original bytes until the diagnosis is complete.
Follow the ideas that meet here
Unicode Symbols in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript
See when literal characters or language-specific escapes are appropriate. You can apply these encoding layers in HTML and source files.
What Is Unicode? A Practical Guide to Characters and Code Points
Return to the conceptual layer before diagnosing bytes. You can review the distinction between characters and glyphs.
Put this guide to work
Continue with the collections below. Their copy controls, formal names, and character records connect the explanation to inspectable data.
Sources and review notes
This article was written for UnicodeSymbols.com and reviewed against the references below on September 3, 2026. The sources establish technical properties; practical recommendations are clearly presented as editorial guidance.