PopChar for Mac

Product summary

PopChar is a small utility that makes typing nonstandard characters quick and painless. It provides easy access to accented letters, umlauts, special symbols and a wide range of glyphs from your installed fonts, so you don't have to memorize keyboard shortcuts or search through character maps.

How to use it

• Open the PopChar panel, pick the glyph you want, and it is inserted into the document or field where your cursor is active.
• The tool automatically detects the font you’re using so inserted characters match the surrounding text.
• It supports HTML characters, tracks recently used symbols, and can be set to launch automatically when you log in.

Trial limitations and licensing

This download includes a demo version that exposes only a limited subset of characters. To unlock the full character set and all features, a paid license is required.

Key advantages

• Faster and more convenient than manually searching menus for special characters.
• Works system-wide, not just inside a single application, making it more versatile than built-in character pickers in some programs.
• Lets you keep a history of frequently used symbols for quicker access.

Notable fixes and updates

• Resolved an issue that caused the PopChar badge to vanish after switching desktop spaces on Mac OS X 10.7 Lion.
• Added a very large (512×512) Finder icon for better visibility.
• Adjusted the sizing behavior for the Cambria Math font for improved rendering.
• Added support for color glyphs in the Apple Color Emoji font (requires Mac OS X 10.7 Lion).
• Implemented a workaround for a clipboard-related bug on Mac OS X 10.7 Lion.
• Ensures the PopChar window remains visible across all spaces.
• Improved the method for saving and restoring clipboard contents to avoid data loss.
• Reduced background CPU usage to be less resource-intensive.
• Worked around insertion problems observed in Google Earth and Texmaker.
• Clarified installer text so users understand when an existing license does not cover an updated version.

Alternative option

If you prefer a commercial alternative, Ultra Character Map is a paid product often recommended for similar tasks.