ASCIIForge turns images and text into ASCII art without uploading anything. Every conversion happens locally, inside the tab you already have open.
What the project is
ASCIIForge started as a small experiment: how much of an image converter can you push into the browser before you need a server? The answer turned out to be all of it. The image tool reads pixels through the Canvas API, maps brightness onto a character ramp, and prints the result. The text tool renders FIGlet fonts the same way. There is no upload step, no queue, no account, and no processing backend that can go down.
Why it runs client-side
Three reasons, in order of importance. First, privacy: a photo you convert never leaves your device, so there is nothing for us to store, leak, or hand over. Second, speed: a 2000-pixel image converts in milliseconds because there is no network round trip. Third, cost: static files on a CDN cost almost nothing to serve, which is why the tools stay free and why nothing needs to sit behind a signup.
What you can do here
The image converter handles PNG, JPG, WebP and animated GIF, with adjustable width, contrast, character ramps, inverted output and Braille. Images can be exported as TXT, PNG or SVG, with colour and ANSI copy available for still-image output. The text generator offers 133 FIGlet fonts, presets for font and uppercase, TXT and PNG downloads, and shareable links. Check the preview and shorten your text or choose a narrower font to fit a chat or README.
How it is built
ASCIIForge uses static HTML, CSS and JavaScript, with no UI framework. The pages load the assets needed for each tool, and FIGlet fonts are fetched when selected. Pages, scripts and images are served through Cloudflare. Conversion runs locally in your browser.
Who it is for
Developers writing README headers, people decorating Discord servers and forum signatures, terminal enthusiasts building MOTD banners, and anyone who wants a quick text version of a picture. The guides cover the parts that are not obvious, such as which images convert cleanly, how character density affects perceived contrast, and how to keep alignment intact when text is pasted into a proportional font.
Contact and feedback
Bug reports, feature requests and corrections are welcome. Use the contact page and mention the browser, the device and what you expected to happen.