Cross and X Mark Symbols

The simple "X" is one of humanity's oldest marks — scratched into clay tablets, painted on doors, printed on ballots. In Unicode, what looks like a single concept actually spans dozens of distinct characters: ballot crosses, multiplication signs, saltires, heavy X marks, emoji crosses, dagger symbols, and Latin-cross religious symbols. Choosing the wrong one can break mathematical formulas, confuse screen readers, or produce unexpected rendering. This guide maps every cross and X mark character in Unicode, explains their semantic differences, and helps you pick the right one for your context.

Quick Copy-Paste Table

The X Marks: Ballot, Multiplication, and Emoji

Ballot X Characters (U+2717, U+2718)

✗ (U+2717, BALLOT X) and ✘ (U+2718, HEAVY BALLOT X) originate from paper voting forms where voters mark their choice with an X. In digital contexts, they are the standard "negative" or "failure" indicators paired with check marks ✓ (U+2713) and ✔ (U+2714).

The weight difference matters for visual pairing:

Always match weights — using ✔ with ✗ creates an unbalanced visual hierarchy.

<span style="color:green">&#x2714; Passed</span>
<span style="color:red">&#x2718; Failed</span>

Multiplication X Characters (U+2715, U+2716)

✕ (U+2715, MULTIPLICATION X) and ✖ (U+2716, HEAVY MULTIPLICATION X) are general- purpose X shapes. Despite the name "multiplication," these are classified as Dingbats, not mathematical operators. They are commonly used as close buttons and cancel icons in web interfaces.

<button aria-label="Close">&#x2715;</button>
<button aria-label="Remove">&#x2716;</button>

Emoji Cross Marks (U+274C, U+274E)

❌ (U+274C, CROSS MARK) is the emoji-style X. On most platforms it renders as a large red X. ❎ (U+274E, NEGATIVE SQUARED CROSS MARK) renders as an X inside a green or gray square. Both are full-width emoji and should not be used in running text where inline symbols are expected.

<!-- Emoji usage in status messages -->
<span>&#x274C; Connection failed</span>
<span>&#x274E; Feature unavailable</span>

The Multiplication Sign: × (U+00D7)

The true mathematical multiplication sign × (U+00D7) lives in the Latin-1 Supplement block, not in the Dingbats or Geometric Shapes blocks. It is semantically a mathematical operator and is the correct character for expressing multiplication in text: "3 × 4 = 12".

Common Confusion: x vs × vs ✕

Using the letter "x" for multiplication is a common mistake that causes problems in mathematical typesetting, search indexing, and accessibility. Screen readers will read "x" as the letter, not as "times."

# Correct: use the multiplication sign
result = "3 \u00D7 4 = 12"    # 3 × 4 = 12

# For cross product, use the dedicated operator
formula = "a \u2A2F b"         # a ⨯ b

Religious Cross Symbols

Unicode encodes numerous cross symbols used in religious, heraldic, and historical contexts:

These are encoded in the Miscellaneous Symbols and Dingbats blocks. They should be used with cultural sensitivity — their meaning varies significantly across cultures.

Daggers (U+2020, U+2021)

The dagger † (U+2020) and double dagger ‡ (U+2021) are typographic reference marks, not X marks, but they are cross-shaped and frequently searched alongside crosses:

In footnote notation, the sequence is: * (asterisk) → † (dagger) → ‡ (double dagger) → § (section sign). Daggers are also used in linguistics to mark reconstructed forms (†*proto-word) and in biology for extinct species.

<p>This claim is disputed.&#x2020;</p>
<footer>
  <p>&#x2020; See Johnson (2019) for a contrary analysis.</p>
</footer>

The Saltire: ☓ (U+2613)

The saltire ☓ (U+2613) is a diagonal cross associated with heraldry (Saint Andrew's Cross, the flag of Scotland). It renders as a clean diagonal X and is visually distinct from the rounder ballot and multiplication X characters.

Box Drawing Cross: ╳ (U+2573)

The Box Drawings block includes ╳ (U+2573, BOX DRAWINGS LIGHT DIAGONAL CROSS), which forms an X using thin strokes aligned to the box-drawing grid. This character is intended for text-based user interfaces (TUIs) and terminal applications where lines must connect precisely.

Close Button Best Practices

The "X" close button is one of the most common UI elements on the web. Here is the recommended approach:

<!-- Accessible close button -->
<button type="button" aria-label="Close">
  <span aria-hidden="true">&#x2715;</span>
</button>

Using a Unicode character (✕ U+2715 or × U+00D7) is lightweight and accessible. The aria-label provides the screen reader text, while aria-hidden="true" on the symbol prevents the screen reader from announcing the character name.

Key Takeaways

• ✗/✘ (Ballot X) are for pass/fail indicators; pair them with matching-weight check marks ✓/✔.
• × (U+00D7) is the correct multiplication sign — never use the letter "x" for math.
• ✕/✖ (Multiplication X) are Dingbats, not math operators — ideal for close buttons and UI dismiss actions.
• ❌ (U+274C) is an emoji that renders as a large red X; avoid it in running text.
• ⨯ (U+2A2F) is the dedicated cross product operator for vector mathematics.
• Religious crosses (✝☦☨☩) have distinct cultural meanings — choose carefully.
• For close buttons, use ✕ with aria-label="Close" for accessibility.