Text to Octal Converter (ASCII Codes)

This converter works on code values, one at a time, from the table. Codes are not capped, so values above 127 are accepted. For whole text rather than single codes, use Text to Binary; for a plain number, use Decimal to Octal.

Going the other way? Convert octal back to text →

How do you convert text to octal?

Text to octal conversion takes one code value from the 0–127 table and writes that number in octal, padded to 3 digits so every code is the same width.

1. Read the code value. This example uses 65.
2. Convert the number to octal: 65 is 101.
3. Pad it on the left to 3 digits: 101.
4. Repeat for every code in the list and separate them with a single space: A = 101.

Text to Octal Conversion Table

The codes this page works through, each with the character it stands for and the same value in hex, octal and binary. Find the code in the first column and read across; the row is the whole conversion. Codes 0 to 31 and 127 have no glyph, so the Char column shows their short name instead. This page writes one three-digit zero-padded octal code per character, single space between codes. This page shows the rows you need; ASCII code chart (decimal, hex, octal, binary) carries all 128.

The base this page writes, defined by the digits it uses, how a value is marked, and what each position is worth.

Worked Example: A to Octal

One code value, taken from the table and written out in full. This is the same working the converter shows when you turn on "show steps".

Start with the code itself: 65. The table gives one row per code from 0 to 127, and that row is the whole answer — there is no arithmetic to get wrong, only a row to find. Reading the row across gives the same value in every base the table carries.

Writing 65 in octal gives 101, and the converter pads it on the left to 3 digits: 101. The padding is not decoration. It keeps every code the same width, so a run of codes can be split apart again later without a separator to guide it. A code typed in a different base lands on the same row, which is what the base selector is for.

Check it in reverse

The value looks the same read backwards. 101 maps to code 65, and code 65 maps to A — the table is a two-way lookup, not a calculation, so no rounding or padding can change the answer. To verify the result by hand, read those octal codes back as text and compare it with the code you started from.

Worked examples: text to octal

Each example gives the value first, then the working. Click a value to load it in the converter.

Every example above reverses exactly — read the same escapes back as characters.

What Changes the Code Output?

Values above 127

Values above 127 are accepted here, because this converter is not capped to ASCII. 233 is é and 8364 is €. the ASCII code chart in four bases lists the codes that ASCII itself defines.

Which base the code is written in

The same code can be typed as decimal, hex, octal or binary, and the base selector says which one you mean. 65, 41, 101 and 01000001 are all the letter A. Pick the wrong base and you look up a different row.

Control codes and printable codes

Codes 32 to 126 are printable characters; 0–31 and 127 are control codes. A control code has no glyph, so the table shows its short name instead — 10 is LF, 13 is CR. Converting one is valid; displaying one is not.

One code or a list

Several codes separated by spaces convert as a list, in order, and each keeps its own row. The separator is a display choice and does not change any value.

Text to Octal in Code

The same rule in one line. Both take code values and return their octal form.

Python: ' '.join(format(b, '03o') for b in s.encode('utf-8'))

JavaScript: [...new TextEncoder().encode(s)].map(b => b.toString(8).padStart(3, '0')).join(' ')

Common Mistakes

• Typing text where a code value belongs. The converter reads 72 as one code, not as the characters 7 and 2 — for whole text use convert text to binary.
• Reading a code in the wrong base. 41 is A in hex and ) in decimal.
• Expecting a character above 127. That value is outside ASCII and the answer depends on which extended set is meant.
• Dropping the padding on a fixed-width code, so a list of codes can no longer be split apart.

Frequently Asked Questions

Related Conversions

• Text also converts to binary by the same lookup — convert text to binary.
• Text also converts to ASCII codes by the same lookup — text to ASCII code values.
• Text also converts to hex by the same lookup — convert text to hexadecimal.
• If your input is binary rather than text, group bits into octal digits instead.
• If your input is decimal rather than text, how to change decimal to octal by dividing by 8 instead.
• If your input is binary rather than text, find the ASCII code for an 8-bit value instead.

The rest of the family sits on all the number and text converters in one place.