What is Unicode and why is it important?

Unicode is a universal character encoding standard that assigns a unique number (code point) to every character in every writing system, plus symbols, emoji, and technical characters. It enables consistent text representation across all platforms, languages, and devices - over 140,000 characters from 150+ scripts.

How do I convert text to Unicode code points online?

Paste your text into the input field and the tool instantly displays Unicode code points in multiple formats: U+XXXX notation, \uXXXX JavaScript escapes, HTML entities (&#x;), and UTF-8 byte sequences. Copy any format for use in your code or documents.

How do I convert Unicode code points to text?

Enter Unicode code points (U+0041, \u0041, or A) into the input field, select the input format, and view the decoded characters instantly. The tool handles all common Unicode notation formats and displays the resulting text.

What is a Unicode code point?

A code point is a unique number assigned to each character in Unicode, written as U+XXXX (hexadecimal). Examples: "A" = U+0041, "中" = U+4E2D, "😀" = U+1F600. Code points range from U+0000 to U+10FFFF (over 1.1 million possible values).

What is the difference between U+XXXX and \uXXXX notation?

U+XXXX is the standard Unicode notation for documentation. \uXXXX is the JavaScript/JSON escape sequence for embedding Unicode in code. Both represent the same code point. For characters above U+FFFF, JavaScript uses \u{XXXXX} syntax.

What are HTML Unicode entities?

HTML entities represent Unicode characters using &#xXXXX; (hexadecimal) or &#NNNNN; (decimal) format. Example: 😀 can be written as 😀 or 😀. Use entities when you can't include Unicode characters directly in HTML.

Why do some emoji need \u{XXXXX} syntax?

Characters above U+FFFF (including most emoji) need more than 4 hex digits. The \u{} syntax in ES6+ JavaScript supports any code point. Example: 😀 is \u{1F600}. Older \uXXXX syntax only works for U+0000 to U+FFFF.

What is UTF-8 and how does it relate to Unicode?

UTF-8 is a variable-width encoding that represents Unicode code points using 1-4 bytes. ASCII characters (U+0000-U+007F) use 1 byte. Extended characters use 2-4 bytes. UTF-8 is the dominant encoding on the web, used by over 98% of websites.

What is the BMP (Basic Multilingual Plane)?

The BMP contains Unicode code points U+0000 to U+FFFF - the first 65,536 characters covering most common scripts and symbols. Characters outside the BMP (U+10000+) are called supplementary characters and include emoji, historic scripts, and rare symbols.

How do I type Unicode characters on my keyboard?

Windows: Alt+X in Word (type hex, press Alt+X), or Character Map. Mac: Character Viewer (Ctrl+Cmd+Space), or enable Unicode Hex Input. Linux: Ctrl+Shift+U then hex code. Or copy characters from this tool.

What is a surrogate pair in Unicode?

In UTF-16 encoding (used internally by JavaScript, Java, Windows), characters outside the BMP are encoded as two 16-bit code units called a surrogate pair. Example: 😀 (U+1F600) = surrogate pair D83D DE00. This affects string length calculations.

Why does JavaScript string.length give wrong counts for emoji?

JavaScript strings use UTF-16, where emoji and other characters above U+FFFF are stored as surrogate pairs (2 code units). "😀".length returns 2, not 1. Use [...str].length or Array.from(str).length for accurate character counts.

What are Unicode combining characters?

Combining characters (like accents) modify the preceding base character. "é" can be: single character U+00E9, or "e" (U+0065) + combining acute accent (U+0301). Use Unicode normalization (NFC/NFD) to handle these consistently.

What is Unicode normalization?

Normalization converts equivalent Unicode sequences to a standard form. NFC (Composed) combines characters where possible. NFD (Decomposed) separates base characters and combining marks. Use normalization for consistent string comparison and storage.

Is my data secure when using this Unicode converter?

Yes! All conversion happens 100% in your browser using JavaScript. Your text and Unicode data never leave your device or get sent to any server. This makes it safe for converting any text including sensitive content.

What is Unicode and why is it important?

Unicode is a universal character encoding standard that assigns a unique number (code point) to every character in every writing system, plus symbols, emoji, and technical characters. It enables consistent text representation across all platforms, languages, and devices - over 140,000 characters from 150+ scripts.

How do I convert text to Unicode code points online?

Paste your text into the input field and the tool instantly displays Unicode code points in multiple formats: U+XXXX notation, \uXXXX JavaScript escapes, HTML entities (&#x;), and UTF-8 byte sequences. Copy any format for use in your code or documents.

How do I convert Unicode code points to text?

Enter Unicode code points (U+0041, \u0041, or A) into the input field, select the input format, and view the decoded characters instantly. The tool handles all common Unicode notation formats and displays the resulting text.

What is a Unicode code point?

A code point is a unique number assigned to each character in Unicode, written as U+XXXX (hexadecimal). Examples: "A" = U+0041, "中" = U+4E2D, "😀" = U+1F600. Code points range from U+0000 to U+10FFFF (over 1.1 million possible values).

What is the difference between U+XXXX and \uXXXX notation?

U+XXXX is the standard Unicode notation for documentation. \uXXXX is the JavaScript/JSON escape sequence for embedding Unicode in code. Both represent the same code point. For characters above U+FFFF, JavaScript uses \u{XXXXX} syntax.

What are HTML Unicode entities?

HTML entities represent Unicode characters using &#xXXXX; (hexadecimal) or &#NNNNN; (decimal) format. Example: 😀 can be written as 😀 or 😀. Use entities when you can't include Unicode characters directly in HTML.

Why do some emoji need \u{XXXXX} syntax?

Characters above U+FFFF (including most emoji) need more than 4 hex digits. The \u{} syntax in ES6+ JavaScript supports any code point. Example: 😀 is \u{1F600}. Older \uXXXX syntax only works for U+0000 to U+FFFF.

What is UTF-8 and how does it relate to Unicode?

UTF-8 is a variable-width encoding that represents Unicode code points using 1-4 bytes. ASCII characters (U+0000-U+007F) use 1 byte. Extended characters use 2-4 bytes. UTF-8 is the dominant encoding on the web, used by over 98% of websites.

What is the BMP (Basic Multilingual Plane)?

The BMP contains Unicode code points U+0000 to U+FFFF - the first 65,536 characters covering most common scripts and symbols. Characters outside the BMP (U+10000+) are called supplementary characters and include emoji, historic scripts, and rare symbols.

How do I type Unicode characters on my keyboard?

Windows: Alt+X in Word (type hex, press Alt+X), or Character Map. Mac: Character Viewer (Ctrl+Cmd+Space), or enable Unicode Hex Input. Linux: Ctrl+Shift+U then hex code. Or copy characters from this tool.

What is a surrogate pair in Unicode?

In UTF-16 encoding (used internally by JavaScript, Java, Windows), characters outside the BMP are encoded as two 16-bit code units called a surrogate pair. Example: 😀 (U+1F600) = surrogate pair D83D DE00. This affects string length calculations.

Why does JavaScript string.length give wrong counts for emoji?

JavaScript strings use UTF-16, where emoji and other characters above U+FFFF are stored as surrogate pairs (2 code units). "😀".length returns 2, not 1. Use [...str].length or Array.from(str).length for accurate character counts.

What are Unicode combining characters?

Combining characters (like accents) modify the preceding base character. "é" can be: single character U+00E9, or "e" (U+0065) + combining acute accent (U+0301). Use Unicode normalization (NFC/NFD) to handle these consistently.

What is Unicode normalization?

Normalization converts equivalent Unicode sequences to a standard form. NFC (Composed) combines characters where possible. NFD (Decomposed) separates base characters and combining marks. Use normalization for consistent string comparison and storage.

Is my data secure when using this Unicode converter?

Yes! All conversion happens 100% in your browser using JavaScript. Your text and Unicode data never leave your device or get sent to any server. This makes it safe for converting any text including sensitive content.

Unicode Converter

simple

Convert text to Unicode code points in multiple formats. View characters as U+XXXX, \uXXXX JavaScript escapes, HTML entities, and UTF-8 bytes. Analyze emoji and international characters.

Encoders & Decodersunicodecode pointutf-8emoji

100% Private - Runs Locally

How to Use

1Enter text or Unicode codes
2Select output format
3View character details
4Copy any format

Examples

Text to U+ Format

Input

Hello

Output

U+0048 U+0065 U+006C U+006C U+006F

Emoji to Unicode

Input

😀🎉

Output

U+1F600 U+1F389

Unicode to Text

Input

U+0048 U+0069

Output

Hi

Frequently Asked Questions

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