Morse Code Translator

Morse code spells letters with short and long signals

Morse code writes each letter as a short pattern of dots (·) and dashes (−). The pattern means the same whether you hear it as beeps, see it as a blinking light or read it on paper. S is three dots (...), O is three dashes (---), so SOS is ... --- ....

Type a message in the text box and the Morse box updates at once; type dots and dashes in the Morse box and the text box updates. The signal tape below draws every dot, dash and gap at its true length, and when you press play it fills in step with the lamp. The translator uses the international (ITU) code table.

When people translate or read Morse code

• Escape rooms and puzzle hunts: a clue made of dots and dashes on a wall, a lock or a prop becomes plain text when you paste it into the Morse box. If you are building the puzzle, type the answer and copy the result.
• Engraved jewelry and gifts: a name, a date or a short word set as dots and dashes on a bracelet or ring. The tape shows the exact pattern and the gaps between letters, so you can hand the engraver a clean copy.
• Films, games and TV: when a character taps out a message or a lamp flickers, write down the pattern and decode it. A run-together ...---... is recognized as SOS even without spaces.
• Amateur radio practice: radio amateurs still send Morse (CW). Playing words at a slow speed is a quick way to check your copy before you go on the air.
• Flashlights and sound signals: before signalling with a torch or a phone screen, rehearse with the tape's lamp and tone so the dot, dash and gap lengths feel natural.

How to use the translator

1. Type in either box. In the Morse box, separate letters with a space and words with a slash (/). On a phone, the buttons under the Morse box add a dot, a dash, a letter space or a word space, or delete the last entry.
2. Check the signal tape. Tap a letter to hear only that letter; press Play to hear and see the whole message. Switch the sound off to get the lamp only.
3. Choose a speed from 5 to 40 WPM. At the default 20 WPM, one dot lasts 0.06 s. If you are new to listening, try 10 WPM first.
4. Copy either box with its Copy button, or press Save WAV to download the audio. Tap any entry in the code chart at the bottom to put it in the box and hear it.

The "1844 telegram" example is the Bible verse "What hath God wrought", used for the first message sent on the first long-distance telegraph line in the United States, on May 24, 1844. The example writes that sentence in today's international code. It goes in the Morse box, so you can watch it being decoded.

International Morse code chart (A–Z and digits)

The international code is defined in Recommendation ITU-R M.1677-1. It covers the 26 letters, one accented letter (É) and ten digits. Every digit has five signals. From 1 to 5 each digit has one more dot than the last (1 is .----, 5 is .....), and from 6 to 0 each has one more dash (6 is -....), ending with 0 as five dashes (-----).

The ITU table also defines punctuation. A slash typed in the text box becomes the symbol -..-., not a word break.

There is no separate code for the multiplication sign (×); it is sent as X (-..-).

Characters outside the ITU table

Real text contains characters the ITU table does not list. The translator handles them in a fixed way and tells you what it did, so nothing disappears silently.

The semicolon (;) is left out in the same way as ! and &. When you type a message that depends on one of these characters, spell it out in words instead.

Dot, dash and gap lengths, and what WPM means

ITU-R M.1677-1 measures everything in dot lengths. A dash is three dots, the gap inside a letter is one dot, the gap between letters is three dots and the gap between words is seven. The silences are part of the code: squeeze them and the same dots and dashes read as different letters.

WPM means words per minute, measured with the standard word PARIS. PARIS takes 43 units including the gaps inside it, and 7 more units for the gap before the next word, so 50 in all. To send PARIS 20 times in a minute you need 1,000 units in 60 seconds, so one dot lasts 60 ÷ 1,000 = 0.06 s. In general, dot length in seconds is 1.2 ÷ WPM.

Run-together signals and SOS

Some signals are sent as one block with no gaps between the letters. The best known is SOS, the distress signal; it is not part of Recommendation ITU-R M.1677-1 but is widely used as a call for help. Section 1.1.3 of the recommendation does define the other five signals below, plus Invitation to transmit (-.-), which shares its code with the letter K, so the translator reads it as K. When you type them into the Morse box the translator recognizes them and shows a label such as <SK>. The letters in angle brackets are the nicknames radio operators use.

To send a run-together signal, put it in angle brackets in the text box, for example <SOS> or <SK>. Plain SOS without brackets is sent as the three letters S, O, S with normal gaps.

How to learn Morse code

• Learn by sound, not by looking at the chart: if you count dots and dashes by eye you will fall behind at speed. Tap letters on the tape one at a time and memorize how each one sounds.
• Keep the letters fast, stretch the gaps: the Farnsworth method, described in ARRL's QEX in 1990, means "sending the characters at a faster speed than the words", for example characters at 20 WPM with enough extra time between them to bring the overall rate down to 10 WPM. This translator's speed control changes dots, dashes and gaps together, so to practice extra spacing, tap letters one by one.
• Start with two letters: in the Koch method you listen at your target speed from the first day, begin with just two characters, and add one more once you copy 90% or more correctly. Tap only the letters you have learned in the chart.
• Repeat short phrases: your name, SOS, a greeting. Playing them again and again trains you to hear whole words, including the word gap.

Common mistakes

• Missing letter spaces: .... is H, but .. .. is two I's. The translator never guesses where one letter ends, so always leave a space between letters.
• Spaced SOS and run-together SOS: ... --- ... is the three letters S, O, S, and ...---... is the distress signal. Both are read as SOS, but only the second is how it is actually sent.
• Mixing up zero and O: 0 is five dashes (-----) and O is three (---).
• Confusing the word separator with the slash symbol: in the Morse box a / means a gap between words. The slash symbol itself is -..-..
• Expecting punctuation to survive: !, & and ; are not in the ITU table. Check the notice under the boxes to see what was left out.
• Expecting accents to survive: only É has a code. Letters such as Á or Ü are sent as A or U.

Limits

• This page covers only the international code table. Other scripts such as Cyrillic, Greek, Arabic or Japanese kana are not supported.
• The text box holds 2,000 characters and the Morse box 100,000. Playback and WAV export are limited to 5 minutes. These are limits of this tool, not of Morse code.
• There is no microphone input and no way to decode a recording. The light signal is a small lamp on the page; the whole screen never flashes, because rapid flashing can be harmful to people who are sensitive to light.
• Morse code is not encryption. Anyone with the chart can read it, so do not use it to hide passwords or personal information.

Sources

Basis: codes and timing follow the text of the ITU recommendation, checked on October 22, 2026. Conversion and sound are produced inside your browser; what you type is never sent to a server or kept in the address.

• 01ITU-R M.1677-1, International Morse codePart I 1.1 letters, digits and symbols, 1.1.3 signals, 2.1 to 2.4 lengths of dots, dashes and gaps
• 02Morse Code World, Morse Code TimingPARIS as 50 units, and the link between dot length and WPM
• 03ARRL QEX, April 1990, Farnsworth timing standardJon Bloom, sending characters faster than the overall word rate
• 04Just Learn Morse Code, The Koch MethodTwo letters at the target speed, one more at 90% or better
• 05Smithsonian, "What Hath God Wrought" telegraph messageMay 24, 1844, first message on the first long-distance US telegraph line
• 06MDN, Web Audio APIHow browsers generate sound

Frequently asked questions

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