The ☆ (White Star) Symbol: Meaning, Unicode, and How to Type It
The ☆ (White Star) symbol is a classic typographic glyph representing an unfilled, five-pointed star. Introduced in Unicode 1.1 in 1993, it is widely used to denote ratings, bookmarks, magical elements, and decorative bullet points. Unlike its solid counterpart, the white star features an outlined design with a transparent center, making it a highly versatile element in both digital text and user interface design.
In the Unicode Standard, the White Star is located at code point U+2606 and belongs to the Miscellaneous Symbols block. Because it is a standard text character rather than a colorful emoji, its appearance changes based on the font you use. Despite stylistic variations across operating systems, it always maintains its clean, hollow pentagram shape.
You will spot the ☆ symbol everywhere across the digital landscape. In user interfaces, it frequently represents an unselected "favorite" or "bookmark" state, waiting to be clicked and filled in. Review systems rely heavily on it to show partial scores, such as a three-out-of-five rating (★★★☆☆). On social media platforms, text aesthetic enthusiasts and kaomoji creators use the white star to add a magical, whimsical flair to usernames and bios. In mathematics and programming, hollow star glyphs occasionally serve as custom operators or wildcard placeholders, though standard asterisks usually take the spotlight.
Typing the ☆ symbol depends on your device and operating system. On Windows, you can type it in Microsoft Word by entering 2606 followed by Alt + X, or by holding the Alt key and typing 9734 on your numeric keypad. Mac users can access it quickly by pressing Cmd + Ctrl + Space to open the Character Viewer and searching for "white star." For web developers and programmers, the HTML entity is ☆ or ☆.
While the ☆ symbol is iconic, it shares the stage with several related characters. The ★ (Black Star, U+2605) is its direct, solid-filled sibling used for active states or full ratings. The ⭐ (Star Emoji, U+2B50) provides a bright, yellow, and often 3D alternative for modern texting. Whether you are building a five-star review system or just sprinkling some stardust into a post, the White Star remains a timeless and essential piece of the Unicode catalog.