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Heart ASCII Art

Ascii art heart designs in text, from <3 and one-line hearts to large hearts for cards and code blocks. Tap to copy.

By Maya Chen, lettering designer and type educator · Checked by Jordan Hale · · How we review content

One-line hearts

One line, 2 wide · traditional
One line, 3 wide · traditional
One line, 34 wide
One line, 3 wide

Text hearts

5 lines, 12 wide · traditional
9 lines, 13 wide
6 lines, 15 wide
8 lines, 20 wide
7 lines, 18 wide

Made with our image converter

We drew a simple heart shape and ran it through the image to ASCII converter on this site. Braille pieces pack eight dots into each character, so they look smoother but rely on a font with Braille Patterns.

9 lines, 18 wide
13 lines, 28 wide
5 lines, 10 wide

12 pieces on this page. All are drawn for this site except those marked traditional, which have been shared online for years without a known author. Copy one and paste it into a code block, a terminal or any app that uses a monospace font; in a proportional font the lines drift apart. Make your own with the text to ASCII generator or the image to ASCII converter.

Key facts

  • <3 is the oldest text heart: turned sideways, the < is the point and the 3 is the two bumps.
  • Bigger text hearts use two curves at the top, drawn with .-., ( and ), and two diagonals that meet at a point, drawn with \ and /.
  • Some apps replace <3 with a red heart emoji automatically; a space between the characters or a code block keeps the text version.
  • A screen reader reads <3 as "less than 3" and a big heart as dozens of punctuation marks.
  • For a message, comment or bio use <3 or a heart symbol; for Discord, Slack or Teams put any heart in a code block.

What is the oldest heart in text?

<3 is the oldest text heart: turned sideways, the < is the point and the 3 is the two bumps. It came from the same sideways-face tradition as :-) and is still the fastest heart to type. Bigger hearts use two curves at the top, drawn with .-., ( and ), then two diagonal lines that meet at a point, drawn with \ and /.

Which ASCII art heart should I use where?

Where Best choice Why
Text message, comment, bio <3 or a heart symbol One line, works in any font
Discord, Slack, Teams Any heart in a code block Monospace keeps the shape
Greeting card or printout Large heart Paste into a document with a monospace font such as Courier
Code comment or README Outline heart Pure ASCII, safe in every editor

For hearts as single symbols (♥ ❤ ♡ and dozens more), see the heart symbols page. To write a name inside a heart, generate the name with the text to ASCII generator and place it under one of these hearts. Whichever ascii art heart you send, keep it short for messages and save the large hearts for code blocks and documents.

Frequently asked questions

Basics

Where does the <3 heart come from?
It comes from the same sideways-face tradition as :-). Tilt your head to the left and the < becomes the point of a heart while the 3 becomes its two bumps. That is why it is the oldest text heart and still the fastest to type.
How is a big heart drawn in text?
Two curves at the top, drawn with .-., ( and ), then two diagonal lines that meet at a point, drawn with \ and /. Each line gets narrower as it goes down, so the shape only holds in a monospace font, such as inside a code block.
What is the difference between a heart symbol and heart ASCII art?
A heart symbol such as ♥, ❤ or ♡ is a single Unicode character, so it works like any letter. ASCII art draws a heart with several keyboard characters across lines. Symbols suit bios and messages; drawn hearts suit cards, code blocks and documents.

Where it works

How do I send a big heart on WhatsApp?
WhatsApp uses a proportional font in messages, so multi-line hearts drift. Wrap the heart in three backticks (```) to switch to WhatsApp's monospace format, or use the heart drawn with <3, which survives better because every line is short. Test it in a chat with a friend before you send it to a group.
Which heart works in a bio or comment?
Use <3 or a heart symbol. Both are one line and work in any font, which matters because bios and comment boxes use proportional fonts and often strip extra spaces. Multi-line hearts need a code block, so save them for Discord, Slack or Teams.
Which heart is best for a card or README?
For a printed card, use a large heart in a document set to a monospace font such as Courier. For a code comment or README, use the outline heart, because it is pure ASCII and safe in every editor. Both stay lined up because every character has the same width.

How it works

How do I put a name inside a text heart?
Generate the name with the text to ASCII generator and place it under one of these hearts. Keep the name narrower than the heart so it stays inside the shape, and paste both into a code block so the columns hold.

Tips & limits

Why does <3 turn into an emoji?
Some apps replace <3 with a red heart emoji automatically. If you want the text version, add a space between the characters or paste it inside a code block, where apps leave text alone. The change usually happens when you send the message, not when you paste, so check the result before posting.
Can screen readers read text hearts?
A screen reader reads <3 as "less than 3" and a big heart as dozens of punctuation marks. If the person you are writing to uses one, write the words and add a single heart emoji instead. A single heart emoji is read aloud as a heart, which is far less noisy than punctuation.
Why does my multi-line heart look lopsided in a message?
The app is using a proportional font, so the spaces that shape the two sides of the heart are narrower than the characters. Switch to a code block, or choose the heart drawn with <3, because every line in it is short.

More ASCII art and tools