Won Sign
About Won Sign
₩ is called the "Won Sign", the symbolic representation of South Korea's official currency——the South Korean Won. When people search for the Won symbol and ask what currency KRW is, the answer is that KRW is the international currency code for the South Korean Won.
The South Korean Won is the legal tender of the Republic of Korea. The ₩ symbol is a stylized capital letter W with two horizontal bars, representing the initial letter of "Won" and symbolizing stability and trust in the currency.
【Historical Origin】The Won has served as Korea's currency since 1902, when it replaced the Korean Yang. The modern Won system was established in 1962 following monetary reform. The distinctive ₩ symbol, featuring a W crossed by two parallel horizontal lines, has become the internationally recognized Won sign, widely displayed on price tags, financial documents, and digital interfaces.
【Modern Status】The South Korean Won (KRW) is one of the most actively traded currencies in Asia and plays a vital role in the global economy. The Bank of Korea serves as the sole issuing authority. Current coin denominations include ₩1, ₩5, ₩10, ₩50, ₩100, and ₩500, while banknotes are issued in ₩1,000, ₩5,000, ₩10,000, and ₩50,000.
How to Type Won Sign
Windows Input
Method 1: Hold the Alt key, type 8361 on the numeric keypad, release Alt
Method 2: Use a Chinese input method to type hanyuan or won and select ₩
Mac Input
Method 1: Press Control + Command + Space to open the Emoji panel, search "won"
Method 2: Use an input method to type hanyuan or won and select ₩
HTML Input
Use entity name or number: ₩ or ₩
CSS Input
Use backslash escape in pseudo-elements: content: "\20A9"; or content: "₩";
Won Sign FAQ
What is the difference between the Won sign ₩ and the letter W?
The Won sign ₩ (U+20A9) is a dedicated currency symbol consisting of the letter W overlaid with two horizontal bars, whereas the standard Latin letter W (U+0057) is an alphabetic character. The two bars on the Won sign serve as a visual indicator that it represents a stable and official monetary unit, distinguishing it clearly from the ordinary letter W.
Should the Won symbol be placed before or after the number?
In South Korea, the Won symbol is conventionally placed before the number, following the same pattern as the dollar sign. For example, ₩10,000 is the standard notation. It is also very common to see amounts written as "10,000원", where 원 is the Hangul syllable for Won, especially in domestic contexts.
What denominations of Korean Won are currently in circulation?
There are four banknote denominations currently in circulation: ₩1,000, ₩5,000, ₩10,000, and ₩50,000. Coin denominations include ₩10, ₩50, ₩100, and ₩500. While ₩1 and ₩5 coins remain legal tender, they are rarely encountered in everyday transactions due to their negligible purchasing power.
If someone asks what currency KRW is, how should I answer?
KRW is the ISO 4217 international currency code for the South Korean Won. In the code, KR stands for the Republic of Korea, and W stands for Won. It is the sole official currency used throughout South Korea, issued and regulated by the Bank of Korea, and it holds significant weight in Asian and global financial markets.
How do I correctly use the Won sign in documents?
For most modern word processors, you can insert the ₩ symbol directly without any issues. If you are working with plain text environments or legacy systems, the HTML entity ₩ is the safest approach. In financial spreadsheets and formal reports, using the three-letter currency code KRW is often preferred to prevent character encoding problems.