Binary Translator — Text to Binary & Binary to Text

What is a binary translator?

A binary translator converts text into binary code — the 0s and 1s computers use — and binary code back into readable text. Every letter, number, and symbol is stored as a number, and binary is the base-2 way of writing those numbers. This translator works in both directions, detects what you pasted automatically, and handles every language and emoji.

How to use the binary translator

1. Type or paste into the box. Auto-detect recognizes binary (only 0s and 1s) and decodes it to text; anything else is translated to binary.
2. Choose how to separate the bytes — spaces (the usual way), nothing, commas, or new lines. When decoding, both spaced and unspaced binary work.
3. Tap Swap to turn the result around, or Copy to save it.
4. Check the character-by-character table to see each letter’s code point, decimal, hex, and binary value.

Binary to English (and every other language)

This translator uses UTF-8, the encoding used by almost every website and app. Plain English letters take one byte (8 bits) each, exactly as in the classic ASCII table. Accented letters, other alphabets, and emoji take two to four bytes — so they translate correctly instead of turning into question marks:

Need the older one-number-per-character format? Switch Encoding to Unicode code points.

How binary code works

Binary is a base-2 number system: each digit (a bit) is 0 or 1, and the place values double from right to left — 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128. Eight bits make one byte, which can store 256 values (0–255). Text is turned into numbers by a standard such as ASCII or UTF-8, and those numbers are written in binary. The letter H is number 72, which is 01001000: 64 + 8 = 72.

How to read binary code, step by step

1. Split the binary into bytes — groups of 8 bits: 01001000 01101001.
2. Write the place values above each byte: 128, 64, 32, 16, 8, 4, 2, 1.
3. Add up the place values wherever there’s a 1: 01001000 = 64 + 8 = 72, and 01101001 = 64 + 32 + 8 + 1 = 105.
4. Look the numbers up in the ASCII table (or the chart below): 72 = H and 105 = i — the message is “Hi”.

Want to get fast at it? Practice with the Binary Game.

Binary alphabet chart

Every uppercase and lowercase letter, digit, and common punctuation mark in 8-bit binary. Uppercase letters start at 65 (A = 01000001) and lowercase letters are exactly 32 higher (a = 01100001) — only the third bit changes.

Common words and phrases in binary

Popular for gifts, cards, jewelry, and secret messages — here’s how they look in binary:

Binary text vs. binary numbers

“Binary” can mean two different things. Translating text gives one byte per character (as above). Converting a number is base conversion: the number 42 is simply 101010 — use the Binary Converter for decimal, hex, and octal, and the Binary Calculator to add, subtract, multiply, and divide binary numbers.

Related tools

Also try the Hex to Text converter, the Morse Code Translator, and the ASCII Art Generator.

Is anything uploaded?

No. The binary translator runs entirely in your browser — nothing you type is uploaded or stored, and it works offline.