JavaScript String Escape Characters

Written by Swapnil RajaPublished 24 Aug 2026

A backslash lets you put special characters inside a string.

Some characters cannot be typed directly inside quotes.

The backslash tells JavaScript to treat the next character specially.

Example

javascript

const text = "She said \"hello\"";

console.log(text);

The quotes appear as part of the text.

The Common Escapes

\n is a new line and \t is a tab.

\" and \' are quotes.

\\ is a single backslash.

Syntax

PreviousJavaScript Template Literals NextJavaScript String Case

"line one\nline two"

Complete Example

html

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
  <title>JavaScript Escape Characters</title>
</head>
<body>

  <h1>Escape Characters</h1>

  <pre id="out"></pre>

  <script>
    const text = "She said \"hello\"\nOn a new line\tafter a tab\nPath: C:\\Users\\Ada";

    document.getElementById("out").textContent = text;
  </script>

</body>
</html>

JavaScript String Escape Characters

Example

The Common Escapes

Syntax

New Lines

Example

Escaping Quotes

Example

The Backslash Itself

Example

Tabs

Example

Template Literals Need Fewer Escapes

Example

Complete Example

Try It Yourself

Important Points

Conclusion