Regex & String Escape Characters List

Grab a clean, copy-ready list of common escape sequences used in regex patterns and string literals. Covers newlines, tabs, unicode escapes, and more across mainstream languages.

Regex & string escape characters(39 escape sequences)

\n — Newline (line feed)
\t — Horizontal tab
\r — Carriage return
\\ — Literal backslash
\0 — Null character
\' — Single quote
\" — Double quote
\b — Backspace
\f — Form feed
\v — Vertical tab
\a — Alert / bell
\uXXXX — Unicode escape (4 hex digits)
\UXXXXXXXX — Unicode escape (8 hex digits)
\u{XXXX} — Unicode code point (JS/Python)
\xXX — Hex escape (2 hex digits)
\ooo — Octal escape (1–3 octal digits)
\d — Digit character class (regex)
\D — Non-digit character class (regex)
\w — Word character class (regex)
\W — Non-word character class (regex)
\s — Whitespace character class (regex)
\S — Non-whitespace character class (regex)
\b — Word boundary assertion (regex)
\B — Non-word boundary assertion (regex)
\. — Escaped dot / literal period (regex)
\* — Escaped asterisk / literal asterisk (regex)
\+ — Escaped plus / literal plus (regex)
\? — Escaped question mark / literal ? (regex)
\( — Escaped opening parenthesis (regex)
\) — Escaped closing parenthesis (regex)
\[ — Escaped opening bracket (regex)
\] — Escaped closing bracket (regex)
\{ — Escaped opening brace (regex)
\} — Escaped closing brace (regex)
\^ — Escaped caret / literal ^ (regex)
\$ — Escaped dollar sign / literal $ (regex)
\| — Escaped pipe / literal | (regex)
\/ — Escaped forward slash
\N{name} — Unicode named character (Python)

Covers escape sequences common across JavaScript, Python, Java, C, and regex engines; some sequences (e.g. \a, \v, octal) are language-specific and may not apply in all contexts.

How to use this list

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Use the sequences in regex patterns, string literals, documentation, or a cheat-sheet UI.

Need just the bare sequences? Select JSON to get a clean array of escape values without descriptions.

Who should use this list?

Developers writing regex patterns or string literals who need a quick escape sequence reference
Technical writers documenting language syntax or building escape-character cheat sheets
Educators and students learning string encoding and regex fundamentals across languages

Examples

Text output with sequence and meaning.

Input

\n — Newline (line feed)

Output

\n — Newline (line feed)

JSON output — bare escape sequences only.

Input

"\\n"

Output

["\\n", "\\t", "\\r", "\\\\", "\\0", ...]

HTML output for a dropdown menu.

Input

\n — Newline (line feed)

Output

<option value="\n">\n — Newline (line feed)</option>

A complete regex & string escape characters reference

Use this list as a reliable quick-reference for escape sequences when writing regex patterns, string literals, or language documentation.

Looking for a dependable regex and string escape characters list to use in code, documentation, or a cheat sheet? This page collects the most common escape sequences found across mainstream languages including JavaScript, Python, Java, and C, as well as standard regex engines. It covers whitespace escapes like \n (newline), \t (tab), and \r (carriage return); encoding escapes like \uXXXX, \u{XXXX}, \xXX, and octal \ooo; string-safe escapes like \\ (literal backslash), \' and \"; and regex-specific tokens like \d, \w, \s, \b, and the full set of metacharacter escapes. Each item pairs the bare escape sequence with a plain-language description so you can scan quickly and paste with confidence. The text format is ideal for cheat sheets and documentation, JSON gives you a clean machine-usable array of sequences, and HTML generates ready-to-paste option tags for dropdowns or training tools. Whether you are building a regex tester, writing API docs, or teaching a programming course, this list saves you from hunting through language specs for the escape syntax you need.

String & regex sequences

Includes both string literal escapes and regex-specific character classes and assertions.

Whitespace escapes (\n, \t, \r)
Regex classes (\d, \w, \s)
Regex metacharacter escapes

Unicode & hex support

Covers the main encoding escapes used across modern languages.

\uXXXX and \u{XXXX}
\xXX hex escape
\N{name} named Unicode

Copy-ready formats

Switch between text, JSON, and HTML formats with one click for any workflow.

Plain text list
JSON array of sequences
HTML <option> tags

Escape character best practices

Always verify escape sequence support in the specific language or regex engine you are targeting.

Check whether your language uses \uXXXX, \u{XXXX}, or \xXX for unicode — they are not universally interchangeable.
In regex, escape metacharacters (. * + ? ^ $ | \ ( ) [ ] { }) with \\ before using them as literals.
Distinguish string-level escapes from regex-level escapes — \b means backspace in a string but word boundary in a regex pattern.

Frequently asked questions

Does this list cover regex-specific escapes as well as string escapes?>

Yes. The list includes both string literal escapes (\n, \t, \uXXXX, etc.) and regex-specific tokens (\d, \w, \s, \b, and metacharacter escapes like \. and \*).

Why does \b appear twice in the list?>

\b has two distinct meanings depending on context: in a string literal it is a backspace character, while in a regex pattern it is a word boundary assertion. Both are listed to make the distinction clear.

Are all of these sequences supported in every language?>

No. Some sequences — such as \a (alert/bell), \v (vertical tab), octal escapes, and \N{name} — are language-specific. Always check the docs for the language or regex engine you are using.

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