Using the Numero Sign
The numero sign is a single character that abbreviates the word "number". It joins a capital N to a small raised o, often underlined, and it is read aloud as "number" or "numero" depending on the language. The glyph is standard in Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian and other Cyrillic-script languages, where it precedes every document, apartment, order and invoice number, and it appears regularly in Spanish, Portuguese, French and Italian paperwork.
How to write it
Put a space between the sign and the number in Russian and most European usage: № 14. Spanish typography tends to close it up (n.º 14 or Nº 14) and often uses a lowercase n. The sign already contains the abbreviation, so never follow it with a period or write "№ No.". It is singular by design; for a list of numbers, Russian doubles it (№№ 3–5) in older documents, though modern style guides prefer a single sign before the range.
English alternatives
English rarely uses the character. American writing prefers the number sign, as in #5, and both British and American formal prose write "No. 5" with a capital N and a period. That means the numero sign in an English document looks either continental or deliberately retro, which is exactly why brands use it: perfume names, boutique shop fronts and craft beer labels all borrow "№" for an old-world feel, and Chanel's most famous bottle is the best-known example.
Lookalikes and mistakes
The most common error is building the sign from two characters. Nº uses the masculine ordinal indicator º, which is at least the right letter, and N° uses the degree symbol, which is not a letter at all and is wrong in every language. The true ligature keeps its shape in any font, sizes correctly with the surrounding text, is searchable and is read by screen readers as "numero". Do not confuse it with ℕ from the maths block, which stands for the natural numbers.
Typing it
Russian keyboard layouts put the sign on Shift + 3, which is why it is second nature to Russian typists and obscure to everyone else. In Word on Windows, type 2116 and press Alt + X. Mac users find it in the Character Viewer by searching "numero". Phones with a Russian keyboard installed usually offer it on the number page; otherwise set up a text replacement or paste it from here. The character sits in the Letterlike Symbols block, and every mainstream system font includes it, so rendering is not a concern on modern devices.
In bios and branding
Beyond its bureaucratic day job, the sign shows up in Instagram bios as a flex ("№1 in my field"), in vintage-style logos, in football and esports nicknames with a shirt number ("Kai №7") and as a compact "number" label in aesthetic layouts. Pair it with the per mille symbol or section symbol for a "European document" look, or set the surrounding text in a bold font so the small ligature does not disappear.