An invisible character detector is a free online tool that scans text for hidden Unicode characters you cannot see, such as zero-width spaces, non-breaking spaces, soft hyphens and byte order marks. It highlights each one with its position and count, so you can fix pasting, search and code problems, then copy the cleaned text.
Hidden characters highlighted
Characters found
Cleaned text
How do I find hidden characters in text?
Short answer: Paste your text into the detector above. It scans every character against a list of known invisible Unicode code points, including zero-width spaces, non-breaking spaces, soft hyphens and byte order marks. Each match is highlighted in place and listed in a table with its name, code point, count and position, so nothing stays hidden.
This beats manual hunting: these characters are invisible by design, so no editor shows them without help.
Why does copied text contain invisible characters?
Short answer: Web pages, PDFs, Word documents and chat apps insert formatting characters that survive copying. Sites use zero-width spaces to control line breaks, Word adds non-breaking spaces around punctuation, and PDFs carry soft hyphens from justified text. When you paste into a plain editor, the formatting stays but becomes invisible, causing mysterious failures in search, code and forms.
Common culprits include U+200B from websites, U+00A0 from Word, and U+FEFF at the start of exported files.
How do I remove zero-width spaces from text?
Short answer: Paste the text into the detector and keep the remove zero-width characters option ticked. The tool deletes every U+200B, U+200C and U+200D it finds and shows the cleaned text below with a before and after character count. Copy the result, and the invisible characters are gone from your clipboard copy too.
For a full cleanup, also convert non-breaking spaces and drop soft hyphens in the same pass.
Frequently asked questions
What are invisible characters in text?
Invisible characters are Unicode code points that occupy no visible space, such as the zero-width space (U+200B), non-breaking space (U+00A0), soft hyphen (U+00AD) and byte order mark (U+FEFF). They slip in when you copy from websites, PDFs, Word or chat apps, and they can break find and replace, passwords, code and form validation with no visible clue.
Why does my pasted text misbehave even though it looks fine?
Hidden characters are the usual cause. A zero-width space inside a word stops exact-match search, a non-breaking space breaks a password or URL, and a soft hyphen can split words when printed. This tool reveals each one highlighted in context, with its Unicode name and code point, so you know exactly what to remove.
Can I remove the hidden characters after finding them?
Yes. Tick the cleanup options you want, such as removing zero-width characters, converting non-breaking spaces to normal spaces, or deleting soft hyphens, and the cleaned text appears below. Copy it or download it as a .txt file for reuse.
What is the difference between a zero-width space and a non-breaking space?
A zero-width space (U+200B) is completely invisible and adds no width, often breaking words for search. A non-breaking space (U+00A0) looks like a normal space but prevents line breaks and fails strict comparisons. This detector finds both and lets you convert or remove each type separately.
Is my text uploaded to a server?
No. The scan and cleanup run 100 percent in your browser with JavaScript. Your text never leaves your device, so you can safely check passwords, private documents and code.