U+2AAA · Math symbol
HTML entity
⪪
LaTeX
\smt
Smaller Than Symbol ⪪
⪪ is smaller than, U+2AAA — \smt in LaTeX. It was added in Unicode 3.2, and Unicode files it under Math symbol.
Codes & technical data
| Unicode | U+2AAA | |
|---|---|---|
| HTML hex | ⪪ | |
| HTML decimal | ⪪ | |
| CSS | \2AAA | |
| JavaScript | \u{2AAA} | |
| Python | \U00002AAA | |
| Java / C# | \u2AAA | |
| Rust | \u{2aaa} | |
| Swift | \u{2AAA} | |
| PHP | \u{2AAA} | |
| URL encoded | %E2%AA%AA | |
| UTF-8 bytes | E2 AA AA | |
| UTF-16 bytes | 2AAA | |
| Base64 | 4qqq | |
| Decimal | 10922 | |
| HTML entity | ⪪ | |
| LaTeX | \smt | |
| Category | Math symbol (Sm) | |
| Introduced | Unicode 3.2 | |
Will ⪪ survive being pasted?
- Normalisation. Yes. ⪪ is unchanged by NFKC, so it survives normalising systems intact.
- Legacy encodings. ⪪ is Unicode-only — it has no Latin-1 equivalent, so a system stuck on an 8-bit encoding cannot represent it.
- Size. 3 bytes in UTF-8. Character-limited fields — SMS, bios, some form validators — usually count bytes, not characters.
Other than characters
Unicode names 24 characters ending in “than”. They differ by direction, weight or decoration rather than by meaning.
Nearby in Supplemental Mathematical Operators
A second full block of operators: n-ary forms, integrals with modifiers, and the dense family of comparison relations that differ only in the slant or stroke of the equals bar.
How to type ⪪
| Windows | Type 2AAA then press Alt+X |
|---|---|
| macOS | Press Ctrl+Cmd+Space, then search for “smaller than” |
| Linux | Press Ctrl+Shift+U, type 2aaa, press Enter |
| HTML | ⪪ |
About Unicode’s Math symbol category
Unicode classifies this as a mathematical symbol, which means software that lays out formulas treats it as an operator or relation and gives it spacing accordingly, rather than setting it tight against its neighbours like a letter.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I type the ⪪ smaller than symbol?
- On Windows, type 2AAA and press Alt+X. On Linux press Ctrl+Shift+U then 2aaa. On any system the quickest route is the copy button on this page.
- What is the code for ⪪?
- Smaller Than is U+2AAA, written in HTML as ⪪ and in LaTeX as \smt. In UTF-8 it takes 3 bytes. The table above lists every escape format.
- What kind of character is ⪪?
- Smaller Than is filed under Math symbol in the Supplemental Mathematical Operators block, and was introduced in Unicode 3.2. Unicode classifies this as a mathematical symbol, which means software that lays out formulas treats it as an operator or relation and gives it spacing accordingly, rather than setting it tight against its neighbours like a letter.