Superscript and subscript in LaTeX

A superscript (power) is written with ^ and a subscript with _. If the index has more than one character, wrap it in braces; otherwise only the first character ends up in the index.

Power and index

x_1^2 + x_2^2

x_1^2 + x_2^2

Multi-character index

a_{n+1} = 2^{10}

a_{n+1} = 2^{10}

Text subscript

E_{\text{kin}}

E_{\text{kin}}

Common mistakes

x^10 gives x to the power of 1 followed by a plain 0. Correct: x^{10}.
A word subscript without \text: E_{kin} is set in italics like the product of variables k, i and n.

Superscript and subscript in LaTeX

Power and index

Multi-character index

Text subscript

Common mistakes

See also