Morse Code Translator
This Morse code translator converts between text and International Morse Code in both directions, covering the letters, the digits, the common punctuation marks and the accented letters that have their own established codes. Letters are separated by a single space and words by a forward slash, which is the written convention — in transmission the equivalent gaps are one dot-length between symbols, three between letters and seven between words. Decoding is forgiving about what you paste: the typographic middle dot and en dash that word processors substitute are accepted alongside plain dots and hyphens. A full reference table is included on the page.
How it works
Translates between text and International Morse Code, covering letters, digits, common punctuation and the accented letters that have their own established codes.
Letters are separated by a space and words by a forward slash — the written convention. Decoding also accepts the typographic variants people paste, so · and − work as well as . and -.
Everything runs in your browser — nothing you paste is sent to a server.
Why the codes are the lengths they are
Morse is a variable-length code, and the lengths are not arbitrary. The most common letters in English get the
shortest codes: E is a single dot and T a single dash, while Q and
Y take four symbols each. That is frequency-based compression, worked out by hand in the 1830s and
following the same principle as a Huffman code more than a century early.
Timing
The written form uses spaces and slashes, but real Morse is defined by timing, all of it relative to the length of one dot:
- A dash is three dots long.
- The gap between symbols in a letter is one dot.
- The gap between letters is three dots.
- The gap between words is seven dots.
Because everything is relative, Morse works at any speed as long as the ratios hold.
Accented letters
International Morse includes codes for letters used outside English — É, Ñ,
Ü, Å and others — and those are supported here. Characters with no established code
are skipped, and the tool tells you which ones they were rather than silently dropping them.
Frequently asked questions
How do I convert text to Morse code?
Type or paste your text with the direction set to Morse. The code appears immediately, with spaces between letters and slashes between words.
How are letters and words separated?
A single space between letters and a forward slash between words. That is the written convention; in transmission the gaps are one dot-length between symbols, three between letters and seven between words.
What characters are supported?
All 26 letters, the digits 0 to 9, common punctuation, and the accented letters with established codes such as É, Ñ and Ü. Anything without a Morse equivalent is skipped and reported.
Can I paste Morse copied from elsewhere?
Yes. As well as plain dots and hyphens, the typographic middle dot and en dash that word processors substitute are accepted, since pasted Morse very often contains them.
Why does my text come back in capitals?
Morse makes no distinction between upper and lower case — there is only one code per letter — so decoded text is conventionally written in capitals.
Is anything uploaded?
No. The translation happens entirely in your browser.
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