Leetspeak (l33t) Translator
Convert text to leetspeak and back — a4 e3 i1 o0 s5 t7 and more, plus classic and symbol alphabets. The basic table decodes unambiguously.
0 characters
0 characters
a→4b→8e→3g→9i→1o→0s→5t→7
Edit the mapping
Type what each letter becomes, up to 6 characters; leave a letter empty to keep it.
What is leetspeak?
Leetspeak (often written l33t or 1337) is an internet slang that swaps letters for visually similar numbers and symbols. It grew out of early bulletin-board and gaming culture as a playful, insider way to write. Its basic table is a readable map — a→4, b→8, e→3, g→9, i→1, o→0, s→5, t→7 — so elite becomes 3l173 and leet becomes l337. Every other character, including spaces, punctuation, and the letter L, is passed through unchanged.
Encoding and decoding
Type into the box and the result updates live. Use Text → l33t to encode and l33t → Text to turn leet digits back into letters. The mapping is case-insensitive, so LEET and leet both convert, and in the basic table, because each mapped letter uses a unique digit, decoding is unambiguous. The classic and symbol alphabets reuse characters, so decoding them, or a table you have edited, is a best guess, and the page says so. Reading back, each word whose reading is a guess is highlighted, with the reason as its tooltip, and a line under the result counts them. One deliberate exception: a token made only of digits, such as 1337 or 2024, is read as a number and left as it is, so decode a word with at least one letter in it — l337 comes back as leet. Leetspeak is for fun — gamer tags, usernames, memes, and lightly stylizing text — not for security or encryption.
Frequently asked questions
Which letters get converted to numbers?
The basic table maps a→4, b→8, e→3, g→9, i→1, o→0, s→5, and t→7. Every other character — including the letter L, spaces, and punctuation — stays exactly as you typed it, and “Edit the mapping” changes what any letter becomes.
Can I turn leetspeak back into normal text?
Yes. Switch to the l33t → Text mode and the digits are converted back to letters. In the basic table each letter uses a distinct digit, so decoding is unambiguous there, though the original upper/lower case of converted letters is not recoverable. One exception: a token made only of digits is read as a number and left alone, so 1337 5p34k comes back as 1337 speak. Decode a word with at least one letter in it, like l337, and you get leet.
Are there other leet alphabets, and can it read leet it did not write?
Yes. Besides the basic table there is a classic alphabet (l → 1 and more) and a symbol alphabet for every letter, and the table in use is shown under the tool. Decoding reads all three; outside the basic table it is a best guess, and the page says so.
Can I change what each letter becomes, or write whole leet words?
Yes. “Edit the mapping”, under the table, has a box for every letter from a to z, filled from the alphabet in use; your changes apply at once in both directions, the table is headed “Conversion table (edited)”, and “Reset to preset” — or choosing another alphabet — puts the preset back. When writing leet, “Leet words too” first rewrites whole words the way leet was written, so hacker becomes haxor and the becomes teh, and “Random capitals” mixes capitals and small letters at random, with “Mix again” for another mix; both are off by default.
How do I know which words the read-back had to guess?
They are highlighted. Reading l33t back, a word made only of digits is marked, since it may be a number or leet spelled in digits, and so is a word read through a symbol that stands for more than one letter — 1 is both i and l in Classic and Symbols. Each mark gives its reason as a tooltip, and a line under the result counts them and says why. The basic table gives each letter its own digit, so there only words of digits alone are marked. In “Edit the mapping”, two letters given the same symbol are outlined in red, with a line naming them, because reading back cannot tell them apart.