Comma
A comma is a punctuation mark ( , ) found on the same keyboard key as the less than ( < ) key on United States keyboards.
Where is the comma on the keyboard?
Below is an overview of a computer keyboard with , (comma) key highlighted in blue.
How to create a comma
Creating the "," symbol on a U.S. keyboard
On English PC and Mac keyboards, the comma is on the same key as the less than symbol. Pressing , (comma) key with no other key creates the comma symbol.
Create a "," symbol on a smartphone or tablet
To create a comma on a smartphone or tablet, open the keyboard and go into the numbers (123) or symbols (sym) section, and tap the ',' symbol.
What is a comma used for on a computer?
Comma in programming
The comma is used in programming as an operator to separate values or elements. For example, in Perl, you could declare multiple variables in one line by separating each of the variables with a comma, as shown below.
my ($example, $computer, $hope);
Comma in numbers
When dealing with numbers, in a calculator, or programs like Microsoft Excel, a comma style is setting that group's numbers. For example, instead of showing "1000000", it would show "1,000,000" with number format and comma separator enabled. To enable the comma style in Microsoft Excel, in the Home tab, click the comma icon.
Use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+1 to quickly apply a comma number format to the selected cell.
A comma in the date
When writing out the date with the month, date, and year the comma is used to separate the date from the year. For example, May 5, 2020, separates the date (5) from the year (2020).
A comma in a CSV
A CSV (Comma-Separated Values) describes a type of file storing data that's separated by commas. See our CSV page for further information and help.
What comes after a comma?
When typing a sentence that uses a comma, a space follows a comma. However, if that comma is in a number, as shown above, it may be followed by a number.
What is the other symbol on the comma key?
On U.S. keyboards, , (comma) is shared with < (less than), which may be next to or above the comma symbol. To create the less than symbol, hold down Shift while also pressing , (comma).
Apostrophe, Conjunction, CSV, Dash, Keyboard terms, Period, Punctuation, Semicolon, Typography terms