Keyboard Shortcuts
If you can manage to remember them or don’t mind always having a cheat sheet nearby, striking certain keys together is a quick and easy way to write letters with accents.
As you can see in the table below, Windows users need to hold down Alt while pressing a few numbers. Use your keypad when doing this, not the numbers along the top row.
Things are a tad different on a Mac. If we take Á as an example, you can see that you must first hold the Option key down and then press e. The comma you see means to depress completely (remove all fingers from the keyboard). Then, continue with the rest of the directions; in this case, you’d type Shift+a.
From Google Docs, go to Insert > Special characters. Or, visit Google Input Tools and select Special Characters from the right side. You have three options here: search for the letter, refine the menu options, or draw the accented letter. If you’re in Google Docs, just select the box that corresponds to the letter you want to use. It’ll be inserted into the document automatically. Otherwise, if you’re using Google Input Tools, choose something, and then close the special characters box. Select the letter, right-click it, and choose Copy. Return to Google Docs and paste it via Edit > Paste.
Another way to use this tool is through a virtual keyboard. It works in Chrome through the Google Input Tools extension.
Or, visit Google Input Tools and select Special Characters from the right side.
Otherwise, if you’re using Google Input Tools, choose something, and then close the special characters box.
Google Docs Add-ons
There are add-ons compatible with Google Docs built specifically for making it easy to import accented letters.
Install an add-on that supports accented letters. As you’ll see, there are a few to pick from; we’ll use Easy Accents as an example. Add-ons are a bit like browser extensions, but they only work in Docs. The Special Characters Chrome extension is an example that makes it just as easy to use accents, but it works on other websites, too, not just Docs. After choosing Install, open the document you want to use the letters in and go to Add-ons > Easy Accents - Docs > Easy Accents - Start. Choose a language from the drop-down menu in the side panel. With the cursor located wherever you want the letter to go, select the corresponding button. To get an uppercase letter, hold Shift while selecting it.
Use Your Computer’s Built-in Method
Another way to type accented letters is to find them in Character Map in Windows or the on-screen keyboard in macOS. Both are similar to Google Input Tools, but they’re built-in to the operating system—no download required.
