Zalgo Text Generator
Turn any text into creepy, out-of-control zalgo glitch text by stacking Unicode combining marks above, through and below each letter, or strip them off again with Clean mode. Everything happens in your browser.
How to use the Zalgo Text Generator
- Type your text in the box. The zalgo version appears below immediately.
- Adjust the sliders: Up stacks marks above letters, Middle strikes through them, Down hangs marks below. Or pick a preset.
- Press Generate again until you like the random pattern.
- Press Copy zalgo text and paste it into Discord, a post, a game name or a document.
- To undo zalgo, open Clean zalgo text, paste the glitch text and press Clean text.
The combining marks behind zalgo
The effect works because text renderers draw each combining mark relative to the letter before it, stacking them outward when there are many, and most apps never limit how many marks a letter may carry. Zalgo text uses characters from the Combining Diacritical Marks block (U+0300–U+036F) plus a few extras. They have no width of their own and attach to the character before them. The generator groups them by where they are drawn:
| Slider | Examples | Code points | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Up | a̍ a̎ a̐ aͣ | U+030D, U+030E, U+0310, U+0363–U+036F… | Stacks marks above the letter, making the text grow upward |
| Middle | a̴ a̵ a̶ a̸ | U+0334–U+0338, U+0315, U+0489… | Tildes, strokes and slashes through the letter |
| Down | a̖ a̗ a̠ a̤ | U+0316–U+0333, U+0339–U+033C… | Hangs marks under the letter, so the text drips down |
Length of zalgo text
Every mark is a character. With the Up, Middle and Down sliders at u, m and d, each letter adds about u + m + d marks (roughly two thirds of that with Random amount on). A 12-letter phrase at 8 / 2 / 8 therefore grows from 12 to around 160 characters. Keep this in mind for limits like 280 characters on X or 32 characters for many usernames.
Tips
- Leave spaces clean so the words stay separate and the text wraps nicely.
- The Strikethrough preset (Middle only) gives a crossed-out look that is still readable, similar to s̶t̶r̶i̶k̶e̶ text.
- Combine with the Upside Down Text or Reverse Text Generator for extra-weird messages, or try the Fancy Text Generator for readable styled fonts.
- Heavy zalgo makes text inaccessible to screen readers. Don't use it for anything people need to read.
Frequently asked questions
What is zalgo text?
Zalgo text is normal text with many Unicode combining diacritical marks stacked on each letter, so the marks spill above and below the line and look glitchy or cursed. The name comes from a 2004 internet horror meme about an entity called Zalgo that corrupts everything.
How does the generator work?
Unicode has combining characters (mainly U+0300 to U+036F) that attach to the previous letter, like an accent. Normally a letter gets one or two, but nothing stops you from adding dozens. The generator adds a random selection of marks above, through and below each character according to the sliders.
Where can I paste zalgo text?
It works in most apps that accept Unicode, including Discord, Reddit, YouTube comments, X and many games. Some sites trim combining marks, limit how many can stack, or cut the text when it exceeds a character limit, because every mark counts as a character.
Why is my zalgo text so long?
Each mark is a separate character. With the Normal preset a 10-letter word becomes around 150 characters. Use lower slider values or the Mini preset if you have a limit such as Discord's 2,000 characters or a username length limit.
How do I remove zalgo from text?
Use the Clean zalgo text tab. It decomposes the text and removes stacked combining marks. With Keep normal accents ticked, letters with one or two marks (é, ñ, ệ) are kept, and anything with more is cleaned. Untick it to strip every accent.
Is zalgo text harmful?
No, it is plain Unicode and cannot run code. Very heavy zalgo can overlap other lines, slow down rendering of long texts and be unreadable for screen readers, so keep it for fun and decoration.