How to type asterisk (*)
Also called star, times sign, multiplication symbol.
Hold Shift with your left little finger and press the 8 key with your right middle finger. There is also a dedicated * on the numeric keypad, which needs no Shift.
Which finger types *
- Finger
- Right middle
- Resting position
- K on the home row
- Shift
- Required, held by the other hand
- Hand
- right
No website can detect which finger you actually used — a browser reports the character, not the hand that produced it. The finger above is the one the standard touch typing layout assigns, and it is the one the lessons here train.
What * is used for
- Means multiply in almost every programming language and spreadsheet.
- Stands for “any characters” when searching or matching filenames, as in *.txt.
- Marks a footnote, and marks a required field on a form.
- Wraps text for emphasis in Markdown.
Where it comes from
The name is Greek for “little star”. Scribes used it in the margins of ancient manuscripts to flag a line they believed had been copied wrongly — a proofreading mark two thousand years older than the footnote it now signals.
The mistake people make
Using the keypad asterisk in a password field and finding it rejected, or typing it on a laptop without a numeric keypad and reaching for a key that is not there. Shift+8 always works; the keypad is the shortcut, not the rule.
If the key is missing or gives the wrong character
- Numeric keypad: the dedicated * key, no Shift needed.
- Windows: hold Alt and type 42 on the numeric keypad.
Practise it properly
Knowing which finger owns a key is not the same as using it without thinking. The Typometer course blocks on the wrong key and names the finger for every one, so the habit forms rather than the knowledge.
Other keys
Related guides
Free, and no account needed.
- Start at level 1: the home rowFind F and J without looking, one key at a time.
- How to learn touch typingWhat actually works, what to ignore, and how long it takes.
- The full typing course415 levels from the home row to code and professional documents.
- Untimed typing practicePractise without a clock and focus on the keys you keep missing.