About LaTeX and MathML support in Pages, Numbers, and Keynote

Learn about using LaTeX and MathML with Pages, Numbers, and Keynote, and view some sample equations.

LaTeX commands
LaTeX packages
MathML elements
MathML attributes
Sample equations

Pages, Numbers, and Keynote support LaTeX and MathML, and support all LaTeX commands that can be converted to MathML with blahtex. Additional supported LaTeX extensions are listed below.

iBooks Author also supports LaTeX and MathML, but the app is no longer updated or available.

Learn more about transitioning from iBooks Author to Pages

Pages, Numbers, and Keynote on iCloud.com don't support LaTeX and MathML.

LaTeX commands

LaTeX generally requires equations to be enclosed in math mode commands such as the examples listed below. To make equation authoring easier, the equation editors in Pages, Numbers, Keynote, and iBooks Author are in math mode by default, so it isn't necessary to add math mode commands to your equations.

\begin{math} … \end{math}
\begin{displaymath} … \end{displaymath}
\begin{equation} … \end{equation}
$ … $
$$ … $$
$ … $
\[ … \]

To add text to an equation that inherits the paragraph style, use \text{…}. Nesting equations inside \text{...} is not supported.

In math mode, blahtex doesn't fully support non-ASCII unicode characters, but it does accept the full unicode character set in text mode. For more information on specific characters, such as the copyright symbol and characters with accent marks, see the blahtex Manual, 2.22.

Supported LaTeX commands (extensions to blahtex) and MathML elements and attributes are listed below.

LaTeX commands that Pages, Numbers, and Keynote support

Command or symbol
\phantom{}
\color
\cancel
\underrightarrow, \underleftarrow, \underleftrightarrow
\lneq, \gneq, \lvertneq, \gvertneq
\thinspace, \medspace, \thickspace, \negthinspace, \negmedspace, \negthickspace
"\:", "\,", "\;", "\!", "\ "
\lmoustache, \rmoustache
\lgroup, \rgroup
\brace, \brack
\xleftarrow, \xrightarrow
\dddot, \ddddot
\copyright
\pounds
\diagup, \diagdown
\dag,\ddag, \dagger, \ddagger
\owns, \ni
{split}

LaTeX commands that Pages, Numbers, and Keynote doesn't support

Command or symbol	Notes
\mathring{}
\ae, \AE
\smallint
\idotsint
\euro	Unicode symbol; works in text mode only
\varGamma
\cal	Use \mathcal{}
\mathml{}
\center
[lrc] in \aligned
\fillin
\strut
\vphantom
\hphantom
\smash
\hspace	Use "\:", "\,", "\;", or \phantom{}
\mspace
\centernot
\buildrelover	Use \overset, \underset
\tabular-related environments	Limited support for \matrix and \aligned
\sideset
\pmb, \boldmath, \unboldmath	Use \boldsymbol

LaTeX commands that iBooks Author supports

Command or symbol
\phantom{}
\color
\cancel
\underrightarrow, \underleftarrow, \underleftrightarrow
\lneq, \gneq, \lvertneq, \gvertneq
\thinspace, \medspace, \thickspace, \negthinspace, \negmedspace, \negthickspace
"\:", "\,", "\;", "\!", "\ "
\lmoustache, \rmoustache
\lgroup, \rgroup
\brace, \brack
\xleftarrow, \xrightarrow
\dddot, \ddddot

LaTeX commands that iBooks Author doesn't support

Command or symbol	Notes
\mathring{}
\copyright	Unicode symbol; works in text mode only
\pounds	Unicode symbol; works in text mode only
\ae, \AE
\smallint
\diagup, \diagdown
\idotsint
\euro	Unicode symbol; works in text mode only
\varGamma
\cal	Use \mathcal{}
\mathml{}
\center
[lrc] in \aligned
\fillin
\strut
\vphantom
\hphantom
\smash
\dag, \ddag	\dagger, \ddagger supported
{split}
\hspace	Use "\:", "\,", "\;", or \phantom{}
\mspace
\centernot
\buildrelover	Use \overset, \underset
\owns	Use \ni
\tabular-related environments	Limited support for \matrix and \aligned
\sideset
\pmb, \boldmath, \unboldmath	Use \boldsymbol

LaTeX packages

These LaTeX packages aren't supported:

Package	Notes
cancel	Use \cancel
ams	Use \underrightarrow, \underleftarrow, \underleftrightarrow
centernot

MathML elements

Use the tables below to learn about the MathML elements that Pages, Numbers, Keynote, and iBooks Author support.

Supported MathML elements

Element	Notes
mo
mi
mn
mrow
menclose	Not all forms of enclosing are supported
mtable	Not all attributes are supported
mtr
mtd
mfrac
msup
msub
msubsup
munder
mover
munderover
mstack
msrow
msgroup
mscarries
mscarry
msline
mlongdiv
mpadded
mspace
maction	Pages, Numbers, Keynote, and iBooks Author support the first MathML child and ignores the rest
mphantom
mfenced
mroot
msqrt
none
mstyle
mtext
ms
maligngroup
malignmark

Partially supported MathML elements

Element	Notes
mlabeledtr	Treated as <mtr> with the first child ignored
semantics	Treated as row
annotation	Effectively ignored

Not supported MathML elements

Element	Notes
mmultiscripts
mprescripts
mglyph
merror
{ContExp}	Content MathML elements are not supported. See which elements are covered by {ContExp}.

MathML attributes

Use the tables below to learn about the MathML attributes that Pages, Numbers, Keynote, and iBooks Author support.

Supported MathML attributes

These MathML attributes are supported by Pages, Numbers, Keynote, and iBooks Author:

Element	Attribute	Default value inheritable from <mstyle>	Values (Value syntax if subset of spec)
*	mathcolor	yes
mstyle	scriptlevel	no
mstyle	display	no
mstyle	scriptminsize	no
mstyle	scriptsizemultiplier	no
mstyle	<attributes specified with default value inheritable>	n/a
mo	lspace	yes
mo	rspace	yes
mo	largeop	yes
mo	minsize	yes
mo	maxsize	yes
mo	accent	yes
mo	movablelimits	yes
mo	symmetric	yes
mo	stretchy	yes
mo	form	yes
mspace	width	yes
mspace	height	yes
mspace	depth	yes
ms	lqoute	yes
ms	rqoute	yes
mfrac	linethickness	yes
mfrac	numalign	yes
mfrac	denomalign	yes
mover	accent	yes
mover	align	yes
munderover	accent	yes
munderover	underaccent	yes
munder	accentunder	yes
munder	align	yes
mtable	rowalign	yes
mtable	columnalign	yes
mtable	columnspacing	yes
mtable	displaystyle	yes
mtr	rowalign	yes
mtr	columnalign	yes
mtd	rowalign	yes
mtd	columnalign	yes
mstack	align	yes	top \| bottom \| center \| baseline \| axis
msrow	position	yes
msgroup	position	yes
msgroup	shift	yes
mscarries	position	yes
mscarries	crossout	yes	updiagonalstrike \| downdiagonalstrike \| horizontalstrike \| verticalstrike
mscarry	crossout	yes	updiagonalstrike \| downdiagonalstrike \| horizontalstrike \| verticalstrike
msline	length	yes
msline	position	yes
mpadded	height	no
mpadded	depth	no
mpadded	width	no
mpadded	lspace	no
mpadded	voffset	no
mfenced	open	yes
mfenced	close	yes
mfenced	separators	yes
maligngroup	groupalign	yes
malignmark	edge	yes

Partially supported MathML attributes

These MathML attributes are partially supported by Pages, Numbers, Keynote, and iBooks Author:

Element	Attribute	Default value inheritable from <mstyle>	Values(Value syntax if subset of spec)	Notes
mo, mn, mi	mathvariant	yes	Not supporting initial, stretched, looped, tailed
mtable	align	no	top \| bottom \| center \| baseline \| axis	rownumber not supported
menclose	notation	yes	updiagonalstrike \| downdiagonalstrike \| horizontalstrike \| verticalstrike	Learn more
mlongdiv	longdivstyle	no	lefttop

Not supported MathML attributes

Element	Attribute	Notes
*	mathbackground
mstyle	infixlinebreakstyle
mstyle	veryverythinmathspace, verythinmathspace, thinmathspace, mediummathspace, thickmathspace, verythickmathspace, veryverythickmathspace	Deprecated in MathML 3.
mi, mn, mo, ms, mstyle, mtext	mathsize
mi, mn, mo, ms, mstyle, mtext	dir
mi, mn, mo, ms, mstyle, mtext	fontfamily, fontweight, fontstyle, fontsize, color, background	Deprecated in MathML 3.
mo	linebreak
mo	lineleading
mo	linebreakstyle
mo	linebreakmultchar
mo	identalign
mo	identshift
mo	identtarget
mo	identalignfirst
mo	identshiftfirst
mo	identalignlast
mo	identshiftlast
mo	fence	Doesn't affect visual layout
mo	separator	Doesn't affect visual layout
mspace	linebreak
mfrac	bevelled
mtable	groupalign
mtable	alignmentscope
mtable	columnwidth
mtable	width
mtable	rowspacing
mtable	rowlines
mtable	columnlines
mtable	frame
mtable	framespacing
mtable	equalrows
mtable	equalcolumns
mtable	side
mtable	minlabelspacing
mtr	groupalign
mtd	rowspan
mtd	columnspan
mtd	groupalign
mstack	stackalign
mstack	charalign
mstack	charspacing
mlongdiv	position
mlongdiv	shift
mscarries	location
mscarries	scriptsizemultiplier
mscarry	location
msline	leftoverhang
msline	rightoverhang
msline	mslinethickness
msub	subscriptshift
msup	superscriptshift
msubsup	superscriptshift
msubsup	subscriptshift
mrow	ltr
maction	selection
maction	actiontype

Sample equations

Basic math

LaTeX	Renders as
`0.15 \cdot \frac{1}{8}`	$No alt supplied for Image$
`-22 \div 11`	$No alt supplied for Image$
`2x + 3y \ge -21`	$No alt supplied for Image$
`3(b-5) < -6(b+5)`	$No alt supplied for Image$
`\left \{ 6 \tfrac{4}{5}, \, \sqrt{49}, \, 6.\overline{3}, \, 7\sqrt{5} \right \}`	$No alt supplied for Image$

Alignment

LaTeX	Renders as
`\begin{aligned} 9 && < && 15 && < && 16 \\ \sqrt{9} && < && \sqrt{15} && < && \sqrt16 \\ 3 && < && \sqrt{15} && < && 4 \end{aligned}`	$No alt supplied for Image$
`\begin{aligned} \text{first number} & & \text{second number} \\ 10 \mbox{\phantom{=digit}} & \cdot & 9 \mbox{\phantom{=digit}} \end{aligned}` A nice trick for aligning equation elements is to use \mbox{\phantom{space}}. The contents inside the brackets (space) will account for the amount of white space created. In the example above, adding extra characters to =digit gives more white space in between the 10 • 9.	$No alt supplied for Image$
`\begin{aligned} N &= 0.555\ldots \\ {\color{red}10}N &= {\color{red} 10}(0.555\ldots) \\ 10N &= 5.555\ldots \end{aligned}`	$No alt supplied for Image$

Color

LaTeX	Renders As
`\begin{aligned} N &= 0.555\ldots \\ {\color{red}10}N &= {\color{red} 10}(0.555\ldots) \\ 10N &= 5.555\ldots \end{aligned}`	$No alt supplied for Image$
`\sum_{\color{0A7C10}n=0}^{\color{red}\infty} a_n x^n`	$No alt supplied for Image$

Integrals

LaTeX	Renders As
`\textstyle \int_{-N}^{N} e^x\, dx`	$No alt supplied for Image$
`\int_{-N}^{N} e^x\, dx`	$No alt supplied for Image$

\textstyle differentiates between inline and display equations.

Matrices

LaTeX	Renders As
`\begin{matrix} a & b \\ c & d \\ \end{matrix}`	$No alt supplied for Image$
`\begin{matrix} c(1)^{n-1} & \dots & c(1)^2 & c(1) & 1 \\ c(2)^{n-1} & \dots & c(2)^2 & c(2) & 1 \\ \vdots & \ddots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots \\ c(n)^{n-1} & \dots & 1 & 0 & 0 \end{matrix}`	$No alt supplied for Image$
`\|x\| = \begin{cases} \phantom{-} x& \text{if } x \geq 0 \\ -x & \text{if } x<0 \end{cases}`	$No alt supplied for Image$
`R_\theta = \begin{bmatrix} \cos \theta & -\sin \theta \\ \sin \theta & \phantom{-} \cos \theta \end{bmatrix}`	$No alt supplied for Image$

Common equation elements

LaTeX	Renders as
`$\Delta S^\circ=\sum S^{\circ }\text{products} - \sum S^{\circ }\text{reactants}$`	$No alt supplied for Image$
`HF(aq) +H_{2}O(l) \rightleftharpoons H_{3}O^{+} (aq) +F_{-}(aq)`	$No alt supplied for Image$
`\nabla \times \overrightarrow{\mathbf{B}} - \frac{1}{C} \frac{\delta \overrightarrow{\mathbf{E}}}{\delta t} = 4\pi \rho`	$No alt supplied for Image$
`x = \frac{- b\pm\sqrt{b^2-4a c}}{2a}`	$No alt supplied for Image$

Long form arithmetic

MathML	Renders as
`<?xml version="1.0"?> <math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"> <mstack> <mscarries location='nw'> <none/> <mscarry crossout='updiagonalstrike' location='n'> <mn>2</mn> </mscarry> <mn>1</mn> <none/> </mscarries> <mn>2,327</mn> <msrow> <mo>-</mo> <mn> 1,156</mn> </msrow> <msline/> <mn>1,171</mn> </mstack> </math>`	$No alt supplied for Image$
`<math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"> <mlongdiv> <mn> 12 </mn> <mn> 16.5 </mn> <mn> 198 </mn> <msgroup position='1' shift='-1'> <msgroup> <mn> 12</mn> <msline length='2'/> </msgroup> <msgroup> <mn> 78</mn> <mn> 72</mn> <msline length='2'/> <mn> 6.0</mn> <mn> 6.0</mn> </msgroup> <msgroup position='-1'> <!— extra shift to move to the right of the "." —> <msline length='3'/> <mn> 0</mn> </msgroup> </msgroup> </mlongdiv> </math>`	$No alt supplied for Image$
`<math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"> <mstack charspacing="loose"> <mscarries position="1"> <mn>1</mn> </mscarries> <mscarries position="1"> <mn>1</mn> <mn>2</mn> </mscarries> <mn>435</mn> <msrow> <mo>×</mo> <none/> <mn>25</mn> </msrow> <msline/> <mscarries position="2"> <mn>1</mn> </mscarries> <mn>2175</mn> <msrow position="1"> <mn>870</mn> </msrow> <msline/> <mn>10875</mn> </mstack> </math>`	$No alt supplied for Image$

Pages, Numbers, Keynote, and iBooks Author don't support LaTeX for long division and remainders. To work with long division and remainders, you must use MathML.

Learn more

Add mathematical equations in Pages:
Add mathematical equations in Numbers:
Add mathematical equations in Keynote:

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Published Date: June 04, 2024