Base64 Encoder and Decoder
Encode and decode UTF-8 text as standard or URL-safe Base64.
Text to Binary Converter
Convert text into 8-bit binary UTF-8 byte groups. Encode letters, symbols, accented characters and emoji directly in your browser.
Every output group is one UTF-8 byte written as exactly eight binary digits.
Advanced options
Normalization may change the UTF-8 bytes and binary output.
The prefix is optional and is off by default.
Convert text to binary online
This text to binary converter encodes text as UTF-8, then formats each byte as an 8-bit binary group. It works for English to binary examples, ASCII-compatible letters, accented characters, non-Latin scripts, symbols, combining marks and emoji. The converter can output spaces, commas, line breaks or continuous binary, and it processes input locally in your browser.
The output is byte-oriented. A binary group represents one UTF-8 byte, not necessarily one character. For example, A is one byte, é is two bytes, and 😀 is four bytes.
Text to binary example
Input text:
Hello, café 😀UTF-8 binary output:
01001000 01100101 01101100 01101100 01101111 00101100 00100000 01100011 01100001 01100110 11000011 10101001 00100000 11110000 10011111 10011000 10000000H becomes 01001000. é becomes two UTF-8 bytes, 11000011 10101001. 😀 becomes four UTF-8 bytes, 11110000 10011111 10011000 10000000.
| Text | UTF-8 bytes in binary |
|---|---|
A | 01000001 |
é | 11000011 10101001 |
✓ | 11100010 10011100 10010011 |
😀 | 11110000 10011111 10011000 10000000 |
How UTF-8 text becomes binary bytes
Text is first encoded as UTF-8. UTF-8 produces bytes, and each byte has a value from 0 through 255. The converter displays every byte as eight binary digits with leading zeroes preserved. ASCII characters usually produce one byte, while accented characters, symbols, non-Latin text and emoji may produce two, three or four bytes per Unicode code point. A visible character can also be a sequence of code points.
Text to ASCII binary vs UTF-8 binary
ASCII covers values from 0 through 127, and UTF-8 preserves those byte mappings. That means standard English letters and punctuation produce the familiar ASCII to binary output, such as A becoming 01000001. This tool uses UTF-8 instead of stopping at ASCII, so é becomes 11000011 10101001 and 😀 becomes 11110000 10011111 10011000 10000000.
Binary separators and output formats
Separator choice changes only formatting. Every group still represents exactly one byte.
01001000 01101001
01001000
01101001
01001000,01101001
0100100001101001The four examples above are Hi with spaces, line breaks, commas and no separator.
Unicode normalization and binary output
Normalization is off by default because it can change the underlying Unicode sequence. NFC may compose characters, NFD may decompose them, and NFKC or NFKD can make compatibility transformations. Those changes alter UTF-8 bytes and therefore binary output.
NFC é
UTF-8 bytes: C3 A9. Binary: 11000011 10101001.
Decomposed e plus U+0301
UTF-8 bytes: 65 CC 81. Binary: 01100101 11001100 10000001.
How to use the converter
- Paste or type text into the input field.
- Choose spaces, commas, line breaks or continuous binary output.
- Optionally select a Unicode normalization form.
- Convert the text, then copy or download the binary result.
Common use cases
- Learn how text is stored as binary bytes.
- Convert ASCII-compatible text to binary.
- Inspect UTF-8 encoding for accented characters and emoji.
- Generate binary byte sequences for tests and documentation.
- Compare composed and decomposed Unicode text.
- Debug byte-level text and encoding issues.
Privacy and local processing
This converter encodes text with JavaScript directly in your browser. Your input is not submitted to UnicodeNow servers.
Frequently asked questions
How do I convert text to binary?
Paste text, choose a binary byte separator, and convert. The tool encodes the text as UTF-8 and displays each byte as eight binary digits.
Does each binary group represent one character?
No. Each group represents one UTF-8 byte. One visible character may require one byte, several bytes, or several Unicode code points.
Is this ASCII to binary or UTF-8 to binary?
It is a UTF-8 to binary converter. ASCII letters work normally because UTF-8 preserves ASCII byte values from 0 through 127.
Why does an emoji produce several binary groups?
Emoji and many supplementary Unicode characters require multiple UTF-8 bytes, so one emoji can produce several 8-bit binary groups.
Can I remove spaces between binary bytes?
Yes. Choose No separator to produce continuous binary output while still encoding the same UTF-8 bytes.
Does Unicode normalization change the binary output?
It can. Normalization may change the underlying Unicode sequence before UTF-8 encoding, so the byte and binary output can change.
How do I convert binary back to text?
Use the Binary to Text converter to decode 8-bit binary byte groups back into UTF-8 text.
Is my text sent to a server?
No. This browser-local converter uses JavaScript to encode text and does not submit your input to UnicodeNow servers.
Related tools
To convert the binary result back into text, use the Binary to Text converter. You can also inspect hexadecimal byte values or measure the UTF-8 byte length of your text.
Binary to Text
Decode binary byte groups into UTF-8 text.
Byte Length Calculator
Count UTF-8 bytes, code points, grapheme clusters and UTF-16 code units for text.
Character Encoding Detector
Compare likely text encodings from raw bytes or byte-like input.
Decimal to Text
Convert decimal bytes or Unicode code point values to text.
Hex to Text
Decode hexadecimal byte values into UTF-8 text.
Text to Hex
Convert UTF-8 text bytes into hexadecimal values.
UTF-8 Encoder and Decoder
Convert text to UTF-8 bytes and validate byte sequences.
Related guides
Unicode vs UTF-8
Unicode defines characters and code points. UTF-8 encodes those code points as bytes for files, databases, web pages, APIs and network messages.
UTF-8 vs UTF-16
Compare UTF-8 and UTF-16 with byte examples, surrogate pairs, byte order, BOM behavior and practical guidance for developers.
What Is a Unicode Code Point?
Learn what Unicode code points are, how U+ notation works, and how code points differ from glyphs, bytes, code units and visible characters.
Unicode Normalization Explained
Learn NFC, NFD, NFKC and NFKD, canonical and compatibility equivalence, and safe normalization for comparison, search and identifiers.