Image to ASCII Art Converter
Turn any picture into ASCII art text: choose the width, character set, contrast and colour, then copy or download it. Your files are never uploaded to our servers. ToolkitPoint processes them on your own computer, so confidential documents stay with you.
Processed in your browser. Your files are not uploaded.
How to use Image to ASCII Art Converter
- Choose an image.
- Set the width in characters (100 is a good start) and pick a character set.
- Adjust Contrast, tick Invert for light text on a dark background, or tick Colour.
- Copy the text, or download it as .txt, a coloured .html page, or a PNG picture.
Worked example
A logo 800 px wide converted at 80 characters with the Standard set and Contrast +30 gives 80 x 22 characters of clean #, + and . shapes, small enough for a README or a Discord code block.
When to use this tool
- Text art for README files, code comments, terminal banners and chats.
- Printing a picture as text for posters or classroom activities.
Important limitations
Fine detail is lost at small widths; portraits and high-contrast pictures work best, and the text only lines up in a monospace font.
Frequently asked questions
How does image to ASCII conversion work?
The picture is shrunk so that each character covers a small block of pixels. The brightness of each block picks a character: dense ones like @ and # for dark areas, light ones like . and spaces for bright areas.
Why do my rows look squashed or stretched?
Characters in monospace fonts are about twice as tall as they are wide, so the tool uses half as many rows to keep the proportions. Paste the result somewhere that uses a monospace font, such as a code block, Notepad or a terminal.
Which character set should I choose?
Standard (10 levels) is clean and readable. Detailed (70 levels) shows more shading at larger widths. Blocks (░▒▓█) looks best in terminals, and Two-tone gives a bold stencil look.
Can I get coloured ASCII art?
Yes. Tick Colour: each character takes the colour of its part of the picture, and the .html and PNG downloads keep those colours. Plain .txt files cannot store colour.
Is my picture uploaded?
No. It is converted in your browser.