How to Write an Ampersand in LaTeX

Write \& to print an ampersand, in text and in math. A bare & is LaTeX's column separator: in tables, matrices and align it moves to the next column, and anywhere else it stops with "Misplaced alignment tab character &".

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The two jobs of &

\&
$&$
A printed ampersand, in text or math.
a & b \\
Text mode, no math preview
Inside tabular, array and matrices: next column.
x &= 1
Text mode, no math preview
Inside align or aligned: the alignment point.
\text{R\&D}
$R&D$
Ampersand inside text in a formula.

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Templates

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Ampersand (&) examples

Each result below is drawn from the LaTeX under it. Copy the code, edit it on this page, or open it in the full editor.

Ampersand in a formula label
$P (A & B) = P (A) P (B ∣ A)$
LaTeX
```
P(A \,\&\, B) = P(A)\,P(B \mid A)
```
Logic texts sometimes use & for "and"; \land (∧) is the usual symbol.
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Aligned at the equals sign
$\begin{aligned} 2 x + 3 & = 7 \\ 2 x & = 4 \\ x & = 2 \end{aligned}$
LaTeX
```
\begin{aligned} 2x + 3 &= 7 \\ 2x &= 4 \\ x &= 2 \end{aligned}
```
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Matrix columns
$(\begin{matrix} 1 & 2 \\ 3 & 4 \end{matrix})$
LaTeX
```
\begin{pmatrix} 1 & 2 \\ 3 & 4 \end{pmatrix}
```
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Cases

| x | = {\begin{cases} x & x \geq 0 \\ - x & x < 0 \end{cases}

LaTeX

\lvert x \rvert = \begin{cases} x & x \ge 0 \\ -x & x < 0 \end{cases}

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Text with an ampersand
$Cost of R&D = 1.2 M$
LaTeX
```
\text{Cost of R\&D} = 1.2\,\text{M}
```
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In a LaTeX document

These commands work in the text of a .tex document (Overleaf, TeX Live, MiKTeX), not inside math. The box on the right shows what the compiled PDF looks like.

Ampersand in text
LaTeX
```
Smith \& Jones (2024) measured the effect.
```
Compiled result
Smith & Jones (2024) measured the effect.
Ampersand inside a table cell
LaTeX
```
\begin{tabular}{ll}
Team & Lead \\
R\&D & Kim \\
\end{tabular}
```
Compiled result
Team Lead
R&D Kim

"Misplaced alignment tab character &"

This error means LaTeX met & outside a table or alignment, usually in a sentence ("Smith & Jones"), a title, a URL or a BibTeX field such as journal = {Science & Society}. Escape it as \& everywhere except where it really separates columns.

In a .bib file the field is copied into your document, so the escape is needed there too: journal = {Science \& Society}.

& in tables and equations

In tabular and matrices each & ends a cell and \\ ends the row, so a row needs one & fewer than it has columns. In align and aligned, & marks the point the lines line up on, usually just before =.

Common mistakes

A bare & outside a table causes "Misplaced alignment tab character".
Instead of
```
Smith & Jones
```
Write
```
Smith \& Jones
```
A trailing & creates an extra empty column and can give "Extra alignment tab".
Instead of
```
1 & 2 & \\  (two columns)
```
Write
```
1 & 2 \\
```

Inside another command's argument, escape & in URLs.

Instead of

\url{https://a.com/?x=1&y=2}  (inside \footnote)

Write

\url{https://a.com/?x=1\&y=2}

In Overleaf, MathJax and Word

Overleaf and pdfLaTeX
\& works without packages. The error message shows the line with the stray &.
MathJax and KaTeX
MathJax and KaTeX accept \& in math and & inside aligned, cases and matrices. In HTML pages the ampersand may need to be written & in the source.
Microsoft Word
In Word type & directly. In an equation array, & marks the alignment point the same way as in LaTeX.

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Ampersand (&) in LaTeX: questions

How do I write & in LaTeX?: Use \&.
What does "Misplaced alignment tab character &" mean?: A bare & appears outside a table or alignment. Replace it with \&.
What does & do in align?: It sets the alignment point; the lines are lined up at the &.

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Team	Lead
R&D	Kim

How to Write an Ampersand in LaTeX

The two jobs of &

Try it live

Ampersand (&) examples

Ampersand in a formula label

Aligned at the equals sign

Matrix columns

Cases

Text with an ampersand

In a LaTeX document

Ampersand in text

Ampersand inside a table cell