Converter
Text to Octal Converter
Input
Output
Run process to generate output.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is octal numbering?
Octal is base-8 numbering using digits 0–7. It was commonly used in early computing because 3 binary bits map exactly to one octal digit (000=0, 111=7). While largely replaced by hexadecimal, octal remains in use for Unix file permissions (e.g. chmod 755).
How is a character converted to octal?
Take the character's ASCII or Unicode code point (decimal), then convert to base-8. 'A' = 65 decimal = 101 octal. 'a' = 97 decimal = 141 octal. Each character typically uses 3 octal digits.
Where is octal still used today?
Primarily in Unix/Linux file permissions: rwxr-xr-x = 755 in octal (4+2+1, 4+0+1, 4+0+1). Network protocols, some legacy systems, and assembly programming occasionally use octal notation. For most modern applications, hexadecimal is preferred.