UNICHAR in ONLYOFFICE: Insert Symbols with Unicode Numbers
Use UNICHAR in ONLYOFFICE Spreadsheet Editor to insert Unicode symbols by code point, with reproducible examples, troubleshooting and compatibility cautions.
Verification status: Official documentation referenced; example outcomes independently reasoned or arithmetically checked where stated. Not executed in ONLYOFFICE Spreadsheet Editor. How formula examples are checked
Quick answer: =UNICHAR(9733) inserts the Unicode character ★ (black star). Use UNICHAR when you know a character’s Unicode code point but do not want to paste the glyph into every cell. Independently expected result: ★.
Version and platform scope — documentation checked 2026-10-13: These examples follow the current English, unversioned ONLYOFFICE Spreadsheet Editor function reference. The ONLYOFFICE Docs 10.0 announcement was published 10 October 2026, but the function reference does not identify which exact Desktop Editors release first supports this function, nor does it confirm parity with every older web server or mobile editor. The function documentation is not a native runtime compatibility test. Before adopting a formula in production, test it in your own installed version of Desktop Editors or the deployed browser-based editor. Do not infer that a function was introduced in Docs 10.0 merely because its page is present today.
Validation transparency: All results labelled expected below follow independent Unicode/decimal reasoning or an official reference claim, not a calculation observed in ONLYOFFICE. No Desktop or web instance was run; no screenshots, build test, or unsupported error outputs are represented as measured results.
Formula language and locale: ONLYOFFICE’s regional settings allow a formula language and a region to be selected independently; the documented English function-insertion instructions show comma-delimited function arguments. The examples below use English function names and comma argument separators. Localized formula names/separators and output punctuation must be confirmed with the reader’s settings. Quoted text and literal Unicode characters are not interchangeable with argument delimiters.
Syntax and the one required argument
=UNICHAR(number)
ONLYOFFICE’s official UNICHAR reference gives exactly one required argument, number: the numeric Unicode value for the character to return. There are no optional arguments and no documented default. A cell reference to a numeric value can be used in place of a literal number. Unicode code points are numerical identifiers (for example U+2605 in hexadecimal is 9733 in decimal); the formula’s input is the decimal number, not the string "U+2605".
| Argument | Required | Expected type and role | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
number |
Yes | Numeric Unicode code point or a numeric cell reference | None; omission is not supported by the reference |
Reproduce the examples
Create a new sheet, type these numbers into cells A2:A7, then enter =UNICHAR(A2) into B2 and fill down. These are intended to be numerically stored cells, not text imported with leading apostrophes.
| Cell | Numeric value in A | Expected B result (character) | Unicode identifier | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A2 | 65 | A |
U+0041 | English capital A |
| A3 | 169 | © |
U+00A9 | Copyright sign |
| A4 | 8364 | € |
U+20AC | Euro sign |
| A5 | 9733 | ★ |
U+2605 | Black star |
| A6 | 32 | [one space] |
U+0020 | Visually blank, but a text space |
| A7 | 128512 | 😀 |
U+1F600 | Emoji display depends on font/platform; native supplementary-character handling must be tested |
The code-point-to-character mappings above were independently checked with Python’s Unicode implementation; they are expected ONLYOFFICE outcomes, not observed outputs. The [one space] notation is an explanatory label: it is not the literal result.
Additional formulas
=UNICHAR(65)
="A"&UNICHAR(32)&"B"
=UNICHAR(9733)&" Priority"
Independently expected results, respectively: A, A B, and ★ Priority. The & concatenation examples are pedagogical predictions, not results from native execution.
Practical application: consistently mark priority
On a separate example sheet, suppose column A contains numeric priority codes: 1 in A2, 2 in A3, and 3 in A4. Put this formula in B2 and fill it down:
=IF(A2=1,UNICHAR(9733),IF(A2=2,UNICHAR(9679),UNICHAR(9675)))
Independently expected outputs: A2=1 gives ★; A3=2 gives ●; A4=3 gives ○. The symbols’ visual size and appearance may differ by font. The formula treats every value other than 1 or 2 as the third class; if the data can be blank or invalid, add explicit validation before relying on that classification.
An alternative is to keep the numeric priority in the original column and format it with conditional formatting; UNICHAR creates text and is best reserved for symbol labels, not for changing the underlying numeric classification.
UNICHAR versus CHAR and pasted Unicode
The current ONLYOFFICE catalogue has separate CHAR and UNICHAR entries. The vendor describes CHAR with a 1–255 computer character-set value, whereas UNICHAR accepts a Unicode number. Use UNICHAR for Unicode code points beyond that narrow CHAR description, such as 9733; do not assume the two functions are interchangeable for all inputs. Manually pasting ★ is also valid for a fixed literal, but =UNICHAR(A2) lets a lookup table or numeric variable control the result.
Common mistakes and untested boundaries
| Symptom | Likely cause and safe check |
|---|---|
Input cell displays U+2605 rather than a star |
Code notation was entered as text, not its decimal code point. Try numeric 9733. |
| Character is an empty-looking cell | Code point 32 is a space, or a different invisible/control character was selected. Inspect the code number. |
| Emoji appears as a box or monochrome glyph | The font or operating system may not display it; that alone does not prove the Unicode value was rejected. |
UNICHAR(0) or invalid code-point input |
Not documented by ONLYOFFICE’s short function article. The exact ONLYOFFICE error code remains unverified. Excel and Google Sheets separately document a #VALUE! for zero, but their behavior is not evidence of ONLYOFFICE behavior. |
Decimal/fractional number |
Handling of fractional or negative numeric inputs is not established by the checked ONLYOFFICE page; test with the target version. |
| Surrogate-range or supplementary-plane inputs | Actual rejection/conversion behavior and emoji rendering require version-specific native testing. |
Cross-application check: Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets also document UNICHAR(number), but their error handling, Unicode coverage and localized formula interfaces must not be assumed identical to ONLYOFFICE. The shared syntax is documented; full execution parity is not verified.
Self-check before using in a workflow
Use =UNICODE(UNICHAR(9733)). Independently expected numeric result: 9733, because both operations refer to U+2605. This is a proposed regression test, not an observed ONLYOFFICE result. Repeat with 65 and a supplementary emoji code only after you confirm your build’s support.
Sources and verification limits
- ONLYOFFICE UNICHAR function reference — official name, one-argument syntax and purpose; accessed 13 October 2026.
- ONLYOFFICE Insert Functions catalogue — placement among text/data functions and manual function-entry conventions; accessed 13 October 2026.
- ONLYOFFICE advanced/regional settings — formula language and regional configuration; accessed 13 October 2026.
- ONLYOFFICE Docs 10.0 announcement (10 October 2026) — current Docs major version context only; not proof of function introduction or Desktop parity.
- Microsoft Excel UNICHAR reference and Google Sheets UNICHAR reference — comparison references, not ONLYOFFICE behavior proofs.
Native execution, invalid-input behavior, input normalization, supplementary-character handling and platform-specific font rendering remain untested.