Unicode Character Inspector
The Unicode Character Inspector breaks text into characters and reports each one’s code point, Unicode category, byte size in UTF-8 and UTF-16, and NFC normalization behavior.
- No length limits
- No registration
- Free forever
- Your text never leaves your browser
How to inspect characters
Paste the text
Up to 40 characters are analyzed in detail.
Read each row
Code point, category, UTF-8 size, UTF-16 encoding, NFC verdict.
Watch the NFC column
“Changes” flags characters that normalize differently — often the root of comparison bugs.
Clean up if needed
Send the text to the Unicode Normalizer or the invisible-character remover.
What the inspector reveals
Categories explain behavior: letters sort, digits parse, whitespace splits, emoji paste — each has different rules everywhere.
Byte sizes explain storage: a name that doubles in UTF-16 is spending surrogate pairs on emoji or rare scripts.
NFC verdicts explain comparisons: strings that look equal can differ byte-for-byte until normalized.
Inspector fields
| Code point | U+ notation, uppercase hex |
|---|---|
| Category | Letter, number, emoji/symbol, punctuation/symbol, whitespace, other |
| Sizes | UTF-8 byte count and UTF-16 code units |
| NFC | Whether normalization changes the character |
Your text never leaves your browser
Every tool runs locally on your device. Nothing you paste is uploaded, stored, or tracked.
Frequently asked questions
Why does an emoji show two UTF-16 values?
Emoji beyond U+FFFF are stored as surrogate pairs — two 16-bit units. The inspector shows both; they combine into the single character you see.
What does “NFC changes” actually mean?
The character is a decomposed sequence (like e + combining accent). NFC would swap it for the precomposed equivalent — same look, different bytes.
Is this a substitute for a full Unicode database?
It covers what text debugging actually needs: identity, category, sizes and normalization. It runs entirely offline in your browser.