NATO Phonetic Alphabet Converter
Spell any text with the ICAO/NATO alphabet (Alfa, Bravo, Charlie), use radio numbers like Niner, mark capitals for passwords, read it aloud or decode it back.
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About this toolWhat is the NATO Phonetic Alphabet Converter?
Type a name, booking reference, serial number or password and this converter spells it with the international radiotelephony spelling alphabet: Alfa, Bravo, Charlie and so on. Each character appears as a card with its code word and the pronunciation ICAO publishes, and the result is also given as plain text to copy.
Press Read aloud and your browser's speech voice says each code word in turn while the current card is highlighted. For passwords and case-sensitive codes, turn on Capital / Lowercase so "Ab" becomes "Capital Alfa Lowercase Bravo". Numbers can use the radio forms Tree, Fower, Fife and Niner or plain English.
The second tab works backwards: paste "Hotel India / Tango Hotel Echo Romeo Echo" and get "HI THERE". It accepts either spelling (Alpha or Alfa, Juliet or Juliett), number words and case markers.
- ICAO/NATO alphabet with official pronunciation respellings
- ICAO or common spellings (Alfa/Alpha, Juliett/Juliet)
- Radio numbers (Tree, Fower, Fife, Niner) or plain numbers
- Capital and lowercase markers for case-sensitive text
- Read aloud with highlighting, using the browser speech engine
- Decoder from code words back to text
- Full reference chart; runs in your browser
How to use the NATO Phonetic Alphabet Converter
- Type the text to spell. Spaces separate words in the output with a slash.
- Choose ICAO spellings (Alfa, Juliett) or common ones (Alpha, Juliet), and radio numbers or plain numbers.
- Turn on Capital / Lowercase if case matters, as in passwords, Wi-Fi keys and some booking codes.
- Press Read aloud to hear it, or Copy to paste the code words into a message or script.
- To go the other way, open "Code words to text" and paste the words you were given.
Worked examples
A booking reference
Input
K9X-42B
Output
Kilo Niner X-ray Dash Fower Two Bravo
Read this way, nobody mixes up 9 and 5 or B and D. Symbols such as - are given plain names.
A case-sensitive password
Input
pX7q (Capital / Lowercase on)
Output
Lowercase Papa Capital X-ray Seven Lowercase Quebec
Marking case stops the listener typing the wrong capitals. Prefer a password manager or link for sharing secrets when you can.
Decoding what you heard
Input
Golf Alfa Tango Echo / Bravo One Two
Output
GATE B12
The decoder accepts common variants such as Alpha, Juliet, Whisky and Xray, and ignores spaces and commas between code words.
Background and insight
The alphabet was developed in the early 1950s for the International Civil Aviation Organization by a team led by linguist Jean-Paul Vinay at the Université de Montréal. The goal was a set of words that pilots and controllers with different first languages would recognise over a noisy radio link. After testing and a few changes (Coca became Charlie, Nectar became November, Extra became X-ray), ICAO brought it into use in 1956, and NATO, the International Telecommunication Union and the maritime community adopted the same words. It replaced older English-only lists such as Able, Baker, Charlie.
Two spellings look odd to English speakers on purpose. ICAO writes Alfa because "ph" is not read as "f" in every language, and Juliett with two t's because a French speaker might otherwise drop the final t. The published pronunciations, such as AL FAH, KEH BECK and YOU NEE FORM, are respellings for speakers of any language. The tool shows both the ICAO spellings and the common English ones (Alpha, Juliet); the sound is the same.
Numbers have their own radio forms in ICAO Annex 10: Tree for three, Fower for four, Fife for five and Niner for nine. They separate 5 from 9 and 3 from "free" on a poor channel, and Niner keeps nine from being confused with the German "nein". Outside aviation and the military most people say ordinary numbers, so the tool offers both.
Common use cases
Phone calls and support desks
Spell names, emails, order numbers and postcodes without "B as in boy" guesswork.
Aviation and radio
Practise call signs, registrations and runway designators the way pilots and controllers say them.
Passwords and keys
Read out a Wi-Fi key or one-time code with capitals and lowercase made explicit.
Learning the alphabet
Hear each code word, use the chart, and test yourself by decoding.
Scripts and training
Copy spelled-out text into call scripts, radio exercises and onboarding material.
Tips and limitations
- Read aloud uses your device's speech voices, which vary by browser and operating system; some read "Niner" more naturally than others.
- Accented letters are spelled with their base letter and marked "(accented)". Say the accent separately if it matters.
- Symbols are given everyday names (Dash, Slash, At sign). They are not part of the ICAO alphabet, so confirm them on the call.
- When spelling an email address, say "at sign" and "dot" as words, then spell the parts that are unusual.
- Avoid reading a full password over a channel you do not trust. Spelling it clearly does not make it secret.
Frequently asked questions
Is it Alfa or Alpha in the NATO alphabet?
ICAO and NATO officially write Alfa, so that speakers whose languages do not read "ph" as "f" pronounce it correctly. Alpha is the common English spelling and sounds the same. Choose either in the options.
Is it Juliet or Juliett?
The official spelling is Juliett with two t's, which tells French speakers to pronounce the final t. Juliet is fine in everyday English use.
Why do pilots say Niner instead of nine?
ICAO radiotelephony uses Niner to stop nine sounding like five on a noisy channel, and to avoid confusion with the German "nein". Three, four and five become Tree, Fower and Fife for similar reasons.
Is the NATO alphabet the same as the ICAO alphabet?
Yes. The words were developed for ICAO and adopted by NATO, the ITU and maritime services in the 1950s, so the same Alfa to Zulu list is used in aviation, the military, shipping and amateur radio.
How do I spell a password over the phone with this?
Turn on Capital / Lowercase, type the password and read out the result, which makes every capital explicit. Better still, share passwords through a password manager, and change any password you had to read aloud.
Can it convert code words back into letters?
Yes. Paste words such as "Hotel Echo Lima Lima Oscar" in the second tab. Use a slash or a new line between words; Capital and Lowercase prefixes set the case.
Is there an in-depth guide to the NATO Phonetic Alphabet Converter?
Yes. “The NATO Phonetic Alphabet: Words, Numbers and Why Alfa” covers the background, how it works, common pitfalls and worked examples. Read the full guide.
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