Character Code Converter
Convert characters to Unicode code points and back, in both directions.
The Character Code Converter turns characters into Unicode code points and back in both directions. It is a handy reference when you are debugging text, working with escapes, or learning how Unicode is laid out.
What is a Character Code?
A character code is a numerical representation of a character in a computer system. The Unicode standard assigns unique codes to over 149,000 characters from virtually all writing systems. Each code point is written as U+ followed by hexadecimal digits. Unicode spans from U+0000 to U+10FFFF, covering characters from ancient scripts like Egyptian Hieroglyphs (U+13000-U+1342F) to modern emojis, symbols, and technical characters. The standard is organized into 17 planes, with the Basic Multilingual Plane (BMP) containing characters U+0000 to U+FFFF being the most commonly used. Within the BMP, characters are grouped logically: U+0000-U+007F contains ASCII, U+0080-U+00FF contains Latin-1 Supplement, U+0100-U+017F contains Extended Latin, and so on. Understanding these groupings helps developers work with international text and ensures proper character display across different platforms and languages.
Understanding Unicode code points is essential for programming, internationalization, and working with text encoding. For example, U+0041 represents 'A', U+03B1 represents Greek alpha 'α', and U+1F600 represents the emoji '😀'. This converter helps you switch between characters and their underlying numeric representations. When you type a character, the tool uses JavaScript's codePointAt() method to retrieve the Unicode code point, handling surrogate pairs correctly for characters outside the BMP like emojis. When converting from code point to character, it uses String.fromCodePoint() which properly handles the full Unicode range. The tool accepts code points in hexadecimal format (U+XXXX or U+XXXXX) or as decimal values, making it flexible for different use cases. This bidirectional conversion is invaluable when debugging text encoding issues, working with character encodings in different programming languages, or when you need to reference specific characters programmatically.
Our tool supports both input formats: you can type a character directly or enter a code point in U+XXXX format or as a decimal number. The conversion happens instantly in your browser with no data sent to any server. Since all processing occurs client-side using native JavaScript methods, the tool works with any Unicode character regardless of your system's installed fonts or locale settings. The result displays both hexadecimal and decimal values for character-to-code conversion, and vice versa, providing complete information for your reference. The tool also shows a helpful hint message when you enter invalid input, such as a character outside the valid Unicode range or malformed code point syntax, guiding you toward correct usage. This makes it an excellent educational tool for learning about Unicode and text encoding concepts in computer science.
How to use this Character Code Converter
- To convert a character to its code point, type or paste the character in the first input field.
- To convert a code point to a character, type the code (e.g., U+0041 or 65) in the second field.
- Click on the result box to copy the primary value to your clipboard.
- Empty or invalid input shows a hint directly in the interface.
FAQ
What is a Unicode code point?
A Unicode code point is a unique number assigned to each character in the Unicode standard. It is written as U+ followed by four to six hexadecimal digits (e.g., U+0041 for 'A').
How do I read U+ codes?
The 'U+' prefix indicates a Unicode code point. The following digits are hexadecimal. For example, U+0041 means hex 41 = decimal 65, which is the letter 'A'.
Does the character code tool make any network requests?
No. This tool runs entirely in your browser using JavaScript. The conversion happens locally on your device with no network requests.
Is this converter free?
Yes, completely free with no limits on usage or conversions.