How this works in your browser
Encoding maps each character to its dot-and-dash sequence from the standard table, joining letters with spaces and words with a forward slash, and decoding reverses that lookup by splitting on the same separators. The written separators stand in for what is really timing: in transmitted Morse, letters are distinguished by a gap of three units and words by a gap of seven, with no visible characters involved. The code itself is worth noticing as design: sequence length was assigned by how often each letter appears in English, which is the same insight that underpins modern compression, arrived at in the 1830s.
Who uses Morse Code Translator
Amateur radio
Encode or check messages while learning or operating.
Puzzles and escape rooms
Create or solve a Morse-based clue.
Learning the code
See sequences alongside their letters while memorising.
Signalling and scouting
Prepare messages for light or sound signalling practice.
Frequently asked questions
How are words separated in the Morse output?
Letters within a word are separated by spaces, and words are separated by a forward slash, a widely used Morse code convention.
What characters are supported?
All letters A-Z, digits 0-9, and common punctuation such as periods, commas, and question marks.
Can I decode Morse code back to text?
Yes, use the second field - paste Morse code there to get the decoded text.
Why is E a single dot and Q four symbols?
Because the code was designed around letter frequency: the most common letters got the shortest sequences so that ordinary English could be sent quickly. E is the most frequent letter in English and gets one dot; Q is rare and gets four symbols. It is an early and elegant example of the same principle behind modern data compression.
What is SOS in Morse?
Three dots, three dashes, three dots, sent as one continuous sequence rather than as three letters. It was chosen because the pattern is unmistakable and easy to send under pressure, not because the letters stand for anything. The rescue phrases attached to it came later.
Is Morse code still used?
Yes, though narrowly. Amateur radio operators still use it because it carries further than voice on the same power and can be decoded through noise that would make speech unintelligible. Aviation beacons still identify themselves in Morse, and it remains a fallback signalling method.
How is the spacing meant to work?
Letters within a word are separated by spaces and words by a forward slash, which is the common written convention. In transmitted Morse the separation is timing rather than characters: a gap of three units between letters and seven between words.