Text to Binary
Convert any text into its binary (base-2) representation.
How to use the Text to Binary
- Type or paste your text.
- Copy the 8-bit binary output.
About the Text to Binary
Text only becomes binary by way of an encoding — a table that assigns a number to every character. This tool takes each character’s Unicode code point, writes that number in base 2, and pads it out to at least eight digits, separating characters with a space. For English text the result is identical to ASCII: “H” is code point 72, which is 1001000 in binary, padded to 01001000. Every character gives you a tidy eight-bit group.
Past ASCII it stops being eight bits per character, and the reason is worth understanding. ASCII defines only 128 characters and fits in 7 bits. Unicode covers vastly more, so its code points run much higher: “é” is 233 and still fits in eight bits, but “€” is 8364 and comes out as a fourteen-digit group, and “你” produces fifteen digits. An emoji is stored as two units and produces two sixteen-digit groups. So this output is not a UTF-8 byte stream — UTF-8 would encode “é” as two separate bytes of eight bits each. It is a direct code-point-to-binary view, which is the clearer thing to look at when you are learning how characters map to numbers, and the binary to text converter reverses precisely this, so anything from here round-trips back exactly.
This is an encoding, not encryption. It hides nothing at all: the mapping is public and anyone can decode it in seconds. Use it for learning, puzzles and homework, never to protect anything. Everything runs in your browser. To convert numbers themselves between bases rather than text, use the number base converter.
Frequently asked questions
Why is each English character exactly 8 bits?
Because ASCII characters have code points from 0 to 127, which fit in 7 bits, and the output is padded to a minimum of 8 digits — one byte. This padding is why "H" (1001000) is shown as 01001000.
Why do some characters produce more than 8 bits?
Because their Unicode code point is a bigger number. The euro sign is 8364, which needs 14 binary digits, and Chinese characters need 15 or more. Only the first 256 code points fit in eight digits.
Is this the same as UTF-8?
No. UTF-8 splits a large code point into several 8-bit bytes, so it would encode "é" as two bytes. This tool writes the whole code point as one binary number instead. For plain ASCII text the two are identical; beyond ASCII they differ.
Is binary encoding a form of encryption?
No. It is a representation, not a secret. There is no key and the mapping is public knowledge, so anyone can convert it straight back. Never use it to protect anything sensitive.
Can I convert the binary back to text?
Yes — the binary to text converter is the exact inverse of this tool, so output from here decodes back to your original text. Keep the spaces between groups, as they mark where each character ends.