Zenkaku to Hankaku Converter

Use this tool to convert Japanese characters between full-width and half-width forms.

Full-width (全角) or Half-width (半角) Input

Output

Understanding Zenkaku and Hankaku Characters

In Japanese text, characters can appear in two forms: full-width (全角, zenkaku) and half-width (半角, hankaku). Zenkaku characters take up a full character space, while hankaku characters take up half the space. This distinction is particularly important for:

  • Numbers: １２３ (zenkaku) vs 123 (hankaku)
  • Alphabets: ＡＢＣ (zenkaku) vs ABC (hankaku)
  • Special characters: ！？ (zenkaku) vs !? (hankaku)
  • Katakana: カタカナ (zenkaku) vs ｶﾀｶﾅ (hankaku)

When to Use Each Type

Zenkaku (Full-width) Usage:

  • Formal documents and business writing
  • Traditional Japanese text
  • Vertical writing (縦書き)
  • When mixing with kanji and hiragana

Hankaku (Half-width) Usage:

  • Computer programming and coding
  • Technical documentation
  • URLs and email addresses
  • When space efficiency is important

Common Use Cases

Our converter is particularly useful for:

  • Converting data between different systems
  • Preparing text for programming and development
  • Formatting Japanese text for different platforms
  • Ensuring consistency in documents
  • Learning about Japanese character variations

Technical Details

The difference between zenkaku and hankaku characters is encoded in their Unicode values. For example:

  • Zenkaku numbers: U+FF10 to U+FF19
  • Hankaku numbers: U+0030 to U+0039
  • Zenkaku alphabets: U+FF21 to U+FF5A
  • Hankaku alphabets: U+0041 to U+005A

Tips for Japanese Text Processing

  • Always check the character width requirements of your target system
  • Be consistent with character width within the same document
  • Consider the reading direction (vertical vs horizontal) when choosing character width
  • Use appropriate character width for different types of content
  • Test your text in the target environment after conversion