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Morse Code Translator

Translate between text and Morse code live — letters, numbers, punctuation, and playable beeps.

(? marks unsupported characters)

What is a Morse code translator?

Morse code represents letters and numbers as combinations of dots (·) and dashes (—) — a universal encoding you can send by radio, light or tapping. This Morse code translator converts between text and Morse live: type text and it encodes to dots and dashes, paste code and it decodes back to text, and you can play the beeps to hear the rhythm. Everything runs locally in your browser.

How to use

  1. Type letters or numbers in the "Text" field and the Morse appears on the right.
  2. Or paste Morse into the "Morse code" field (space between letters, / between words) and the text appears on the left.
  3. Press play to hear the dot-and-dash beeps.

Common use cases

  • Learn or teach Morse code, or solve puzzles and escape-room clues.
  • Encode SOS, a code word or a keepsake message into dots and dashes for design.
  • Need another encoding? Try Base64 or the number base converter.

Why do the gaps trip people up more than the dots and dashes?

Everyone memorizing Morse stares at the dots (·) and dashes (—), but what actually garbles a message is usually the spacing. Morse has three lengths of pause: the gap within a letter is shortest, the gap between letters is three times as long, and the gap between words is seven times. Squeeze the spaces out of ... --- ... and SOS reads as one long nonsense run of letters. That's why this tool deliberately puts one space between letters and a / between words when encoding, and splits on the same rule when you paste code in to decode — so what you copy to someone else stays readable. Also remember: standard Morse only covers A–Z, 0–9 and a few punctuation marks — there's no Chinese, no upper/lowercase distinction, and unsupported characters are flagged with ?. Press play to hear the rhythm; the long-and-short beeps are the fastest way to build a feel for it. Need a different encoding? See Base64.

Frequently Asked Questions

How are dots and dashes separated?

By international convention, dots and dashes within a letter run together, letters are separated by one space, and words by a "/" (or three spaces). This tool uses a space between letters and a / between words when encoding, for easy reading and copying.

Does case matter?

No. Morse code is case-insensitive, so SOS or sos both give ··· ——— ···. Decoded output is shown in uppercase.

Does it support non-English text?

Standard Morse code only covers A–Z, digits 0–9 and common punctuation — there is no mapping for Chinese, emoji, and so on. Characters with no equivalent are marked with "?" when encoding.

Can I hear it?

Yes. The play button uses the Web Audio API to synthesize dot (short beep) and dash (long beep) sounds — no files or connection needed.

Related reading

Morse Code Explained: Dots, Dashes and the Rhythm Between Them →

Embed this tool

Add this tool to your own website or blog for free — just copy and paste the code below (it includes a link back to this site).