ASCII Text Generator

What is Text to ASCII Art?

Text to ASCII art converts plain text into large, stylized banners made entirely from keyboard characters. Try our free ASCII text generator to create your own text art instantly.

Unlike image-to-ASCII conversion which transforms photographs into character art, text-to-ASCII art takes plain text input and renders each letter as a larger, decorative pattern using ASCII characters. This technique is powered by FIGlet (Frank, Ian, and Glenn's Letters), a program originally written in 1991 that generates text banners from ordinary text using specialized font files.

FIGlet fonts define how each character in the alphabet is represented as a multi-line ASCII art pattern. When you type a word or phrase, the generator looks up each character in the chosen font file and assembles them side by side to produce the final output. The result is a dramatic, eye-catching text banner that can be displayed anywhere plain text is supported.

How FIGlet Fonts Work

FIGlet fonts are stored in .flf (FIGlet Font) files. Each font file contains a header with metadata followed by character definitions that specify exactly how each letter, number, and symbol should be rendered.

• Character mapping: Each printable ASCII character (codes 32–126) is mapped to a multi-line pattern of sub-characters that form its visual representation.
• Height consistency: All characters within a font share the same height (number of lines), ensuring rows align properly when characters are placed side by side.
• Smushing rules: FIGlet supports configurable "smushing" rules that control how adjacent characters overlap or merge, creating tighter, more natural-looking output.
• Hardblank characters: Special placeholder characters ensure proper spacing within character designs without being collapsed by smushing rules.

The rendering process reads each character of your input, retrieves the corresponding multi-line pattern from the font file, and concatenates them horizontally. Smushing rules are then applied to merge overlapping edges, producing clean, readable output.

Popular FIGlet Fonts

There are hundreds of FIGlet fonts available, each with its own visual style. Here are some of the most widely used:

  _   _      _ _       
 | | | | ___| | | ___  
 | |_| |/ _ \ | |/ _ \ 
 |  _  |  __/ | | (_) |
 |_| |_|\___|_|_|\___/ 

  _    _      _ _       
 | |  | |    | | |      
 | |__| | ___| | | ___  
 |  __  |/ _ \ | |/ _ \ 
 | |  | |  __/ | | (_) |
 |_|  |_|\___|_|_|\___/ 

    __  __     ____    
   / / / /__  / / /____
  / /_/ / _ \/ / / __ \
 / __  /  __/ / / /_/ /
/_/ /_/\___/_/_/\____/ 

 #     #                             
 #     # ###### #      #       ####  
 #     # #      #      #      #    # 
 ####### #####  #      #      #    # 
 #     # #      #      #      #    # 
 #     # ###### ###### ######  ####  

 _   _      _ _       
| | | | ___| | | ___  
| |_| |/ _ \ | |/ _ \ 
|  _  |  __/ | | (_) |
|_| |_|\___|_|_|\___/ 
                       |_|

Common Uses

ASCII text art has a wide range of practical and creative applications across the digital world:

Tips for Best Results

• Choose the right font: Simpler fonts like Standard work best for longer text, while decorative fonts like Shadow or Block are better suited for short words or titles.
• Keep text short: ASCII text art expands horizontally — long phrases may wrap awkwardly. Aim for one to three words per line for the cleanest output.
• Use a monospaced font for viewing: ASCII art relies on fixed-width characters to maintain alignment. Always view and share your art in a monospaced font like Courier, Consolas, or your terminal's default font.
• Test across platforms: Different terminals and text editors may render characters slightly differently. Preview your art in the environment where it will be displayed.
• Mind the width: Standard terminal windows are typically 80 characters wide. Choose fonts and text lengths that fit within this limit to avoid line wrapping.
• Stick to ASCII characters in input: FIGlet fonts are designed for standard ASCII printable characters. Special characters, accented letters, or emoji may not render correctly in all fonts.