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Text to Binary Converter

Free Text to Binary Converter

A text to binary converter translates ordinary text into its binary representation by encoding each character as a sequence of 0s and 1s, and reverses the process to decode binary back into readable text.

Supports ASCII, UTF-8, and UTF-16 encodings with custom delimiters. Conversions run entirely in your browser - nothing is uploaded or stored.

Text input

17 characters17 bytes

Binary output

136 bits17 bytes

How to convert text to binary

1

Enter your text

Type or paste any text into the input pane. Multi-line input, emoji, and Unicode characters are all supported.

2

Choose an encoding

Pick ASCII (8-bit) for plain English, UTF-8 for full Unicode coverage, or UTF-16 for fixed-width 16-bit code units.

3

Choose a delimiter

Select how binary groups should be separated - space, none, comma, hyphen, or a custom string of your choice.

4

Copy the binary output

Click the copy button to grab the binary result, or hit swap to convert binary back to text instead.

When to use each encoding

ASCII (8-bit)

Simple 1 byte per character. Good for basic English text, digits, and punctuation. Cannot represent accented letters, emoji, or non-Latin scripts.

UTF-8 (variable bytes)

The default encoding of the modern web. Uses 1-4 bytes per character so it can represent every Unicode code point, including emoji and CJK characters, while remaining backward-compatible with ASCII.

UTF-16 (16-bit code units)

Fixed-width 16 bits per code unit (with surrogate pairs for supplementary characters). Used internally by JavaScript strings, Java, and Windows APIs.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is binary code?

Binary code is a base-2 numeral system that represents data using only two digits, 0 and 1. Computers use binary internally because the underlying transistors have two stable states (on and off), so every character, image, and instruction is ultimately stored as a sequence of bits.

How do I convert text to binary?

Type or paste your text into the input box, choose an encoding (ASCII, UTF-8, or UTF-16), pick a delimiter between binary groups, and read the binary output on the right. The conversion runs live as you type and you can copy the result with one click.

What's the difference between ASCII and UTF-8 binary encoding?

ASCII uses a fixed 8 bits per character and only covers the first 128 code points (basic English letters, digits, and punctuation). UTF-8 is a variable-length encoding that uses 1 to 4 bytes per character, so it can represent every Unicode character (accents, emoji, Chinese, Arabic, and more) while staying backward-compatible with ASCII for the first 128 code points.

How many bits per character?

ASCII uses 8 bits (1 byte) per character. UTF-8 uses 8 bits for ASCII characters, 16 bits for most Latin and Greek letters, and up to 32 bits for emoji and rare scripts. UTF-16 uses 16 bits per code unit, with surrogate pairs (32 bits) for characters outside the Basic Multilingual Plane.

Can I convert binary back to text?

Yes. Click the swap button to flip the converter into binary-to-text mode, then paste your binary string. The tool tolerates any delimiter (spaces, commas, hyphens, no separator) and chunks the bits according to your selected encoding before decoding them back to readable text.

Is this tool free?

Yes, the NitroClaw text to binary converter is 100% free with no signup. All conversion runs entirely in your browser - your text and binary data are never uploaded to a server, logged, or stored.