Strikethrough Text Copy and Paste: How to Cross Out Text in Any App
Need to add a strikethrough on Instagram, Discord, or Twitter? Here's exactly how — including which platforms have native formatting and which need Unicode.
Strikethrough — a line drawn through text — is great for corrections, jokes, and crossing off list items. Some apps have it built in; others need a Unicode workaround. Here's how to cross out text on each major platform.
Apps with native strikethrough
A few apps format strikethrough for you, no generator needed:
- WhatsApp: wrap text in tildes — ~like this~
- Discord: wrap text in double tildes — ~~like this~~
- Slack and many note apps: select text and apply strikethrough from the formatting toolbar.
Apps that need the Unicode method
Instagram, Twitter/X, Facebook, and most bio fields have no strikethrough option. There, you use Unicode: a generator adds a combining 'long stroke overlay' mark to each character, so the line becomes part of the text itself and pastes in as plain text.
Cross out text anywhere with the Strikethrough Text Generator →
How the Unicode version works
Each of your letters gets a combining stroke character layered on top of it. Because combining marks attach to the preceding character, the strike rides along wherever the text goes. The downside: it's built from combining marks, so a few apps that sanitize those may drop the line — preview before relying on it.
When to use which
If the app has native strikethrough (WhatsApp, Discord), use it — it's cleaner and accessible. Use the Unicode version only where there's no built-in option, like Instagram bios and captions or X.