How to type backslash (\)
Also called reverse solidus, escape character.
Press the backslash key with your right little finger, above Enter on a US keyboard. No Shift. On UK keyboards it usually sits beside the left Shift or next to Enter, depending on the model.
Which finger types \
- Finger
- Right pinky
- Resting position
- ; on the home row
- Shift
- Not required
- 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
- Separates folders in a Windows file path, as in C:\Users\Documents.
- Escapes the character after it, so \n means a new line and \" means a literal quote.
- Begins almost every command in LaTeX.
Where it comes from
It was invented for computers, not for writing. Bob Bemer had it added to ASCII in 1961 specifically so the pair /\ and \/ could represent the logical operators “and” and “or” — a purpose it no longer serves at all.
The mistake people make
Confusing it with the forward slash. Web addresses always use the forward slash /; only Windows file paths use the backslash \. A URL typed with backslashes will not resolve, and it is the most common cause of a link that looks right and does not work.
If the key is missing or gives the wrong character
- Windows: hold Alt and type 92 on the numeric keypad.
- Mobile: on the second symbols page of most keyboards.
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.