How to use: Escape Smart Characters
Escape Smart Characters is a free online Encoding Tools tool that converts smart (typographic) Unicode characters — e.g. smart quotes, em/en dashes, ellipses, ©, ®, ™, arrows — into their plain ASCII equivalents. Characters with no ASCII mapping (e.g. ☣ ) are handled according to the 'Unmappable character instantly in your browser. Paste your data, adjust the options and get the result in real time — no installation, no sign-up, and nothing is ever uploaded to a server.
Use Escape Smart Characters now →
Description
Converts smart (typographic) Unicode characters — e.g. smart quotes, em/en dashes, ellipses, ©, ®, ™, arrows — into their plain ASCII equivalents. Characters with no ASCII mapping (e.g. ☣ ) are handled according to the 'Unmappable character
- Encoding Tools
- Because everything is computed client-side, Escape Smart Characters is safe to use with sensitive data such as API keys, tokens or private logs.
How to use
Using Escape Smart Characters takes three steps:
- Paste your data into the input box (or load the example).
- Configure the options to match your target format or scenario.
- Copy, download or inspect the output — it updates live as you type.
Run
Use cases
Common situations where Escape Smart Characters helps:
- Converts smart (typographic) Unicode characters — e.g. smart quotes, em/en dashes, ellipses, ©, ®, ™, arrows — into their plain ASCII equivalents. Characters with no ASCII mapping (e.g. ☣ ) are handled according to the 'Unmappable character
Parameters
This tool has no options — it works on the input alone.
FAQ
What is Escape Smart Characters?
Escape Smart Characters converts smart (typographic) Unicode characters — e.g. smart quotes, em/en dashes, ellipses, ©, ®, ™, arrows — into their plain ASCII equivalents. Characters with no ASCII mapping (e.g. ☣ ) are handled according to the 'Unmappable character. It runs entirely in your browser, so your data stays private.
Is Escape Smart Characters free to use?
Yes. Escape Smart Characters is free, unlimited and works without registration or installation.
Does my data get uploaded?
No. All processing happens locally in your browser; nothing is sent to any server.
Good to know
- Everything runs client-side, so extremely large inputs are limited by your browser tab’s memory rather than by a server upload limit.
- The worked example below could not be pre-computed for this tool (threw: function is not iterable (cannot read property Symbol(Symbol.iterator))); the interactive tool above still works normally.