Everything happens locally in your browser - nothing is sent to any server. A dot is a short beep, a dash is a long beep. Letters are separated by a space, words by " / ". Characters with no Morse equivalent are skipped when translating, and shown as "?" when decoding unrecognized Morse.
Morse Code Examples
| Text | Morse Code | Why it is worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| SOS | ... --- ... | The universal distress signal - chosen for a pattern that is simple to send and impossible to mistake, not because the letters stand for anything. |
| ok | --- -.- | One of the most recognized short words around, and quick to tap out since it is only two letters. |
| I love you | .. / .-.. --- ...- . / -.-- --- ..- | A classic three-word phrase, handy for seeing how word breaks (" / ") work across multiple words. |
| banana | -... .- -. .- -. .- | A favorite practice word - long enough to show letter spacing clearly without being a real message. |
| help | .... . .-.. .--. | Short, common, and easy to recognize under pressure. |
| hello | .... . .-.. .-.. --- | The classic greeting - usually the first word beginners learn to send. |
| good bye | --. --- --- -.. / -... -.-- . | A friendly farewell spread across two words. |
| kiss | -.- .. ... ... | Short and sweet - a fun one to send to someone. |
| stop | ... - --- .--. | Historically used instead of a period in telegrams, since punctuation was costly or unreliable to transmit. |
| QRZ | --.- .-. --.. | A ham radio Q-code meaning "who is calling me?" - shorthand baked right into the alphabet. |
Generated with this page's own rules: letters within a word are joined by a space, words are joined by " / ". Paste any code above to hear it or decode it back to text.
American inventor Samuel Morse and his assistant Alfred Vail developed the code together, first demonstrating it publicly in 1844 with the message "What hath God wrought".
The Titanic's radio operators sent the newer SOS alongside the older CQD distress call as the ship went down on 15 April 1912, making it one of history's most famous uses of the signal.
Skilled operators typically send around 15-25 words per minute; the fastest confirmed hand-sent and hand-copied speed, set by Ted McElroy in 1939, was roughly 75 words per minute.
The version used worldwide today is International Morse Code, standardized in the 1860s - it replaced the older, less precise American Morse Code once used on US telegraph and railroad lines.
How does Morse code actually work?
Each letter and digit is represented by a unique sequence of short and long signals, dots and dashes. A dot is one unit of time, a dash is three units, and the pauses matter just as much: one unit between symbols in the same letter, three units between letters, and seven units between words. Samuel Morse also assigned the shortest codes to the most frequently used letters, a single dot for E and a single dash for T, so that an average message could be sent as quickly as possible.
Is Morse code still used today, or is it obsolete?
It is far from obsolete, just niche. Commercial shipping stopped requiring it once the GMDSS satellite system took over international distress communication in 1999, but amateur radio operators still use it worldwide since it carries further than voice on a weak signal, and pilots may still notice it, since many VOR and NDB radio beacons identify themselves with a short Morse callsign. It also survives as a universal backup, since SOS can be signaled with nothing more than a light, a mirror, or a whistle.
Do I need to know Morse code to use this tool?
Not at all. Type any text into the box above and this tool converts it instantly, and it works the other way too, paste or type Morse into the second box to translate it back into normal text. The alphabet reference table further down the page covers every letter and digit, and the play button lets you listen to the actual rhythm if you want to start training your ear.
Why do dots and dashes sound different lengths when I press play?
That timing is intentional and matches how real operators send Morse. The playback speed slider sets a base unit length in words per minute, a dot lasts exactly one of those units and a dash lasts three, with matching silent gaps in between. Slide the speed down if you are just starting out and want a slower, clearer rhythm, or push it up once dots and dashes start blending into a single beep.