Text / Japanese
Kana Converter: Hiragana, Katakana, Romaji
Convert between hiragana, katakana, and romaji in Hepburn or Kunrei-shiki, type Japanese with romaji as on a Japanese keyboard, and look up the gojūon table.
Kana Converter: Hiragana, Katakana, Romaji: Hiragana and katakana map one to one, so converting between them is exact. Romaji follows modified Hepburn, the system on signs and in most dictionaries (shi, chi, tsu, fu), or Kunrei-shiki, Japan's official system (si, ti, tu, hu). Long vowels can be marked with macrons or circumflexes or written as typed, ん before a vowel becomes n', and っ doubles the next consonant, with tch for っち in Hepburn. Runs 100% locally in your browser with zero server file uploads.
- Category
- Text tools
- Runs
- In your browser
- Cost
- Free · no sign-up
- Availability
- Ready to use
Runs entirely in your browser
tōkyō、matcha、rāmen
とうきょう、まっちゃ、らーめん
トウキョウ、マッチャ、ラーメン
Kanji are left as they are: reading them needs a dictionary. Long vowels are guessed from the spelling, so the ou in a verb such as omou (思う) is shown as ō; check names and verbs. Romaji: n' or n before a consonant gives ん, nn before a vowel gives ん and an n-syllable (konnichiwa, konnyaku), a double consonant gives っ, and - gives the long-vowel mark ー.
The gojūon table
Two kana, two jobs
Japanese is written with three scripts. Hiragana spells grammatical endings, particles, and native words without common kanji; katakana spells loanwords such as コーヒー (kōhī, coffee), foreign names, and emphasis; kanji carry most meaning. Every hiragana has a katakana twin with the same sound.
Learners usually master hiragana first, then katakana, using the gojūon table, the fifty-sounds chart arranged by vowel and consonant. Practise reading words aloud and checking them here, and keep track of exam progress with the JLPT score calculator.
Typing Japanese
On a computer, Japanese is typed in romaji and converted by an input method, the same way the romaji-to-kana mode here works. To practise typing speed in Japanese and other languages, try the typing test.
How to use it
- Choose kana to romaji, or romaji to kana.
- Type or paste your text; the results update as you type.
- Pick Hepburn or Kunrei-shiki and whether to mark long vowels, then copy the result.
Privacy & limitations
Everything is converted in your browser.
Related tools
Frequently asked questions
Which romanisation should I use?
Hepburn is the most widely used, on station signs, passports, and in learners' dictionaries, and is closest to English spelling. Kunrei-shiki is Japan's official standard and is taught in Japanese schools; it follows the kana table more regularly.
Why is Tokyo written Tōkyō?
The macrons mark long vowels: とう is a long o. Many signs and English texts drop them and write Tokyo, which loses the difference between words such as おばさん (aunt) and おばあさん (grandmother).
Can it read kanji?
No. Kanji have several readings that depend on the word, which needs a dictionary. Kanji are left unchanged; convert text written in kana.
How do I type small kana and ん?
Type n' or n before a consonant for ん (kon'ya, shinbun); nn before a vowel gives ん and an n-syllable, so konnichiwa becomes こんにちわ. A double consonant such as kk gives っ, x or l before a vowel gives a small kana (xa for ぁ, xtu for っ), and a hyphen gives the long-vowel mark ー.
Free tool · runs in your browser · no account required