Braille Converter - Text to Unicode Grade-1 Braille

How to use this tool

1. Choose Text → Braille or Braille → Text, then type or paste into the input.
2. The output updates instantly. Capital and number indicators are on by default in forward mode.
3. Use Swap to move the current output into the input and change direction, or Copy to copy the output.
4. In forward mode, toggle the dot grid to visualize each emitted cell, including indicator cells.

What is Braille?

Braille is a tactile writing system used by people who are visually impaired. Characters are formed by raised dots arranged in a 2×3 cell (two columns of three dot positions each), giving 64 possible combinations. The system was invented by Louis Braille in France in 1824, when he was just 15 years old, building on a military “night writing” system created by Charles Barbier.

The 6-dot cell

Each Braille cell has 6 dot positions, numbered 1–6 from top-left to bottom-right:

Dot positions:
[1][4]
[2][5]
[3][6]

A raised dot at position 1 and 2 (left column, top two rows) represents the letter A (dot 1) and B (dots 1 and 2), and so on.

Grade 1 vs. Grade 2 Braille

• Grade 1 (uncontracted): a direct letter-by-letter encoding of the alphabet, numbers, and punctuation. This converter uses a simplified Grade 1 map with UEB-style capital and number indicators; it is not a full UEB translator.
• Grade 2 (contracted): includes shorthand contractions for common words and letter combinations (e.g., a single cell for “the,” “and,” “with”). Used in books and real-world reading materials to save space and increase reading speed. Grade 2 requires extensive study to read and write fluently.

Numbers in Braille

The digits 1–0 reuse the same cells as letters a–j, so a number sign (⠼, dots 3–4–5–6) marks the beginning of each run of digits. For example, 25 becomes ⠼⠃⠑. If an a–j letter immediately follows a digit, this converter places the Grade 1 symbol indicator (⠰) before that letter so it is not read as another digit: a2a becomes ⠁⠼⠃⠰⠁.

Capital letters and reverse conversion

A capital sign (⠠, dot 6) appears before each uppercase letter when the Capitals option is on. For example, Hello becomes ⠠⠓⠑⠇⠇⠕. Capital and number indicators are enabled by default and can be turned off for decorative output; when either is off, the page labels the result as legacy/decorative and not standard Grade 1.

Choose either conversion direction above the input. In reverse mode, Swap moves the displayed result into the input and changes direction, so you can inspect a round trip without retyping. Reverse conversion reads ⠼-marked a–j cells as digits, ⠠ as a capital sign, and ⠰ as a Grade 1 symbol indicator. Without ⠼, a–j cells are ambiguous and are read as letters: for example, ⠃⠑ becomes “be,” not “25.”

This is a simplified indicator converter for learning and quick text checks, not a complete UEB rule engine or a Grade 2 translator. Its punctuation table is intentionally small, and unknown Braille cells are preserved during reverse conversion. The visible dot grid follows the same encoded sequence as the output, including separate tiles for the number, capital, and Grade 1 symbol indicators. Unmapped plain-text characters stay in the output without being shown as fictitious Braille cells.

Grade 1 alphabet chart (dot positions)

Braille literacy and global usage

An estimated 36 million people worldwide are blind. In the United States, only about 10% of blind people are Braille readers - a decline from earlier decades attributed partly to audio technology (screen readers, text-to-speech) and partly to later-life vision loss. Braille literacy is strongly associated with higher employment rates among blind individuals; advocates argue that Braille remains essential for reading accurately, independently, and silently.

Refreshable Braille displays

A refreshable Braille display is a hardware device containing a row of electromechanical cells - typically 40 or 80 cells wide - where tiny pins raise and lower electronically to represent characters. The display updates as a screen reader navigates text, allowing blind users to read digital content in real time. Braille displays are commonly connected via USB or Bluetooth and work with screen readers like NVDA, JAWS, and VoiceOver.