✨ Instant Script Converter

Hiragana to Katakana Converter

Type any hiragana or katakana text and convert it instantly between the two - a direct, always-accurate character swap, since both scripts represent exactly the same sounds.

Hiragana to Katakana Converter: A Direct, One-to-One Swap

Converting hiragana to katakana is the simplest of the script conversions in Japanese, because the two scripts represent exactly the same sounds. Unlike kanji, which needs to be looked up word by word, hiragana and katakana have a direct one-to-one correspondence: every hiragana character has exactly one matching katakana character, and vice versa. あ is always ア, か is always カ, ん is always ン. Nothing about the pronunciation changes - only the shape of the characters does, which is why this tool converts any text you type instantly and exactly, with no dictionary lookup involved.

Why the Two Scripts Are Easy to Convert Between

Both hiragana and katakana are kana - phonetic syllabaries developed centuries ago to represent the sounds of Japanese, unlike kanji, which carries independent meaning. Because they cover an identical sound set, built around the same gojūon (fifty-sound table), converting between them is a pure character substitution rather than a translation.

A Few Details Handled Automatically

  • Dakuten and handakuten - the marks that turn か into が or は into ぱ carry over identically: が becomes ガ, ぱ becomes パ.
  • Small つ/ッ (sokuon) - used to double the following consonant, converts the same way in both directions: がっこう ↔ ガッコウ.
  • Small youon combinations - きゃ/キャ, しゅ/シュ, ちょ/チョ and the rest convert exactly the same way.

The one place this isn't a purely mechanical swap is long vowels: hiragana usually repeats a vowel character (おかあさん), while katakana conventionally uses a lengthening dash instead (オカーサン). This converter performs the direct character substitution; for a name you're building from scratch rather than existing kana, our Japanese Name Converter applies the long-vowel convention automatically.

Example Hiragana-to-Katakana Pairs

HiraganaKatakanaReading
ありがとうアリガトウArigatou
さくらサクラSakura
がっこうガッコウGakkou
まいけるマイケルMaikeru

Frequently Asked Questions

Does converting hiragana to katakana change the pronunciation?
No. Both scripts represent identical sounds - converting between them changes only how the word looks, never how it's said.
Is this the same process as converting kanji to katakana?
No. Kanji conversion requires knowing the specific word's reading, since one kanji can have several possible pronunciations. Hiragana-to-katakana conversion is a direct character swap with no ambiguity - see our Kanji to Katakana page for that different process.
Why do long vowels look different in hiragana and katakana?
Hiragana typically spells a long vowel by repeating the vowel character, while katakana uses a single lengthening mark (ー) instead. It's a difference in writing convention, not in the sound itself.
Can this tool convert kanji too?
No - kanji characters are left unchanged, since converting kanji requires knowing the specific word's reading rather than a fixed character map. Use our Kanji to Hiragana or Kanji to Katakana tools for that instead.

Explore the Other Conversion Tools

Working from kanji instead? See Kanji to Hiragana and Kanji to Katakana. Starting from an English name? Our Japanese Name Converter builds the katakana, hiragana, kanji, and romaji versions of it from scratch.