How strikethrough text actually works
Strikethrough text — t̶h̶e̶ ̶k̶i̶n̶d̶ ̶w̶i̶t̶h̶ ̶a̶ ̶l̶i̶n̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶r̶o̶u̶g̶h̶ ̶i̶t̶ — isn't a font. It's a Unicode trick. Each character in your text gets a combining character glued to it: U+0336, called COMBINING LONG STROKE OVERLAY. That overlay draws a horizontal line through whatever character it's attached to.
There's also U+0335 (COMBINING SHORT STROKE OVERLAY), which draws a shorter line that doesn't extend to the edges of each character. The long stroke version is what most people recognize as strikethrough. The short stroke is subtler — more of a dash through the middle.
Neither version changes the underlying character. The letter "A" is still "A." The overlay is just stacked on top of it. That's why you can copy and paste strikethrough text into any app that supports Unicode — the crossed-out appearance travels with the text.
Our strikethrough text generator handles this automatically. Type your text, copy the result, paste it wherever you need it.
Native strikethrough vs. Unicode strikethrough
Some platforms let you apply strikethrough using their own markdown or formatting syntax. Others don't support it at all — and for those, Unicode combining characters are the only option.
Here's the full breakdown:
| Platform | Native strikethrough? | Syntax | Unicode strikethrough works? |
|---|
| Discord | Yes | ~~text~~ | Yes |
| Slack | Yes | ~text~ | Yes |
| Reddit | Yes | ~~text~~ | Yes |
| WhatsApp | Yes | ~text~ | Yes |
| Instagram | No | — | Yes |
| Facebook | No | — | Yes |
| Twitter/X | No | — | Yes |
| TikTok | No | — | Yes |
| LinkedIn | No | — | Yes |
| Threads | No | — | Yes |
| Telegram | No (desktop only via menu) | — | Yes |
A few things to notice. Discord, Slack, Reddit, and WhatsApp all support native strikethrough through markdown-like syntax. Discord and Reddit use double tildes (~~text~~), while Slack and WhatsApp use single tildes (~text~). Native strikethrough on these platforms renders as a proper styled element — it's searchable, accessible to screen readers, and looks consistent with the platform's design.
Instagram, Facebook, Twitter/X, TikTok, LinkedIn, and Threads have zero native strikethrough support. No markdown syntax, no formatting menu, nothing. If you want strikethrough on these platforms, Unicode combining characters are your only option.
For platform-specific formatting guides, see our posts on WhatsApp strikethrough and markdown formatting across WhatsApp, Discord, and Slack.
When to use native vs. Unicode strikethrough
If a platform supports native strikethrough, use it. Native formatting is always better for accessibility — screen readers understand it, search engines can parse it, and it renders predictably across devices.
Use Unicode strikethrough only when the platform doesn't offer native support. That's Instagram, Facebook, Twitter/X, TikTok, LinkedIn, and similar apps where formatted text simply isn't a feature.
Our text generator and font generator handle both cases. For platforms like Discord, they produce native markdown syntax. For platforms like Instagram, they produce Unicode-styled text.
Common uses for strikethrough text
Price discounts. Showing the old price crossed out next to the new price: $49.99 $29.99. This works in social media posts, product descriptions, and marketing copy.
Corrections. Crossing out a mistake while leaving it visible: "The meeting is at 3pm 4pm." It shows transparency — you're not hiding the error, just marking it.
Humor and sarcasm. Strikethrough is internet shorthand for "I said it but I'm pretending I didn't." Social media is full of this: "What a terrible wonderful idea." The crossed-out word is the real opinion.
Emphasis through contrast. Drawing attention to a replacement word by crossing out the expected one. It's a rhetorical device that works surprisingly well in short-form text.
To-do lists. Crossing off completed items. This is especially common on platforms like Discord and Slack where strikethrough renders natively.
How the combining character technique works, step by step
When our strikethrough text generator processes your input, here's what happens to each character:
- Take the character — say, "H"
- Append U+0336 (COMBINING LONG STROKE OVERLAY) after it
- The result is "H̶" — one base character plus one combining mark
This repeats for every character in your string, including spaces. The combining character is invisible on its own — it only manifests as an overlay when rendered next to a base character.
This is the same mechanism that powers other Unicode text effects like underline text. The difference is just which combining character gets appended — U+0336 for strikethrough, U+0332 for underline.
Accessibility and limitations
Unicode strikethrough has real trade-offs. Screen readers typically read the combining characters literally — a user hearing your text might hear "H combining long stroke overlay" for each character. That's not a great experience. For longer text, it becomes unusable.
For a deeper look at these trade-offs, read are Unicode fonts accessible?.
Strikethrough text also doesn't survive all contexts. Some apps strip combining characters on paste. Some fonts don't render the overlay cleanly, leaving gaps or misaligned lines. And on older devices or in certain email clients, the overlays might not render at all.
Use strikethrough for short decorative touches — a word or a phrase, not a paragraph. And if your audience includes screen reader users, consider whether the visual effect is worth the accessibility cost.
Copy-paste tips
The process is simple: type your text into our strikethrough generator, copy the output, paste it into the app you're using. But a few things can go wrong.
Double-check the paste. Some apps (especially Facebook Messenger and certain email clients) strip or break combining characters on paste. If the strikethrough disappears, the app is filtering them out — there's no workaround.
Mobile keyboards. On iPhone and Android, copying and pasting Unicode text works the same as regular text. Tap and hold to select, copy, switch apps, paste. No special keyboard or app needed. See our guide to copying and pasting fonts on iPhone for step-by-step details.
Character counts. Combining characters count toward character limits. Each strikethrough character is actually two characters (the base character plus the overlay), so your text takes up roughly double the character count. Keep this in mind for Twitter/X posts (280 characters) and Instagram bios (150 characters).
FAQ
What Unicode character creates strikethrough text?
U+0336, called COMBINING LONG STROKE OVERLAY. It's a combining character that draws a horizontal line through whatever base character it follows. There's also U+0335 (SHORT STROKE OVERLAY) for a shorter line.
Does strikethrough text work on Instagram?
Instagram doesn't support native strikethrough formatting. But Unicode strikethrough (using combining characters) works in Instagram bios, captions, and comments. Generate it with our strikethrough text generator and paste it in.
What's the difference between native and Unicode strikethrough?
Native strikethrough uses the platform's own formatting system — like ~~text~~ on Discord. It renders as a proper styled element, works with screen readers, and looks consistent. Unicode strikethrough uses combining characters that visually overlay a line on each character. It works everywhere but is less accessible.
Why does my strikethrough text look broken on some devices?
Some fonts and older devices don't render combining characters cleanly. The overlay line might have gaps, sit too high or low, or not appear at all. This is a font rendering issue, not a problem with the text itself. Bold system fonts tend to render strikethrough most reliably.
Can I use strikethrough in email?
It depends on the email client. Gmail, Outlook, and Apple Mail all support rich-text strikethrough through their formatting toolbars. Unicode strikethrough works in subject lines and plain-text emails, but some clients strip combining characters from message bodies.
Does strikethrough text count as double the characters?
Yes. Each strikethrough character is actually two characters — the base letter plus the combining overlay. So "hello" in strikethrough is 10 characters, not 5. This matters for platforms with character limits like Twitter/X.
How do I type strikethrough on Discord?
Wrap your text in double tildes: ~~like this~~. Discord will render it as like this. For more Discord formatting, see our Discord text formatting guide.
