PHP chr() Function: Converting ASCII Codes to Characters

PHP's chr() function converts an ASCII code to its corresponding character.

Basic Syntax

chr(int $ascii) : string

The function takes an integer $ascii representing the ASCII code and returns a one‑character string.

Usage

1. Convert a single ASCII code

Provide a numeric code to obtain the character, e.g.:

$char = chr(65);
echo $char; // outputs A

2. Batch conversion of a range

Loop through a series of codes to output each character:

for ($ascii = 65; $ascii <= 90; $ascii++) {
    $char = chr($ascii);
    echo $char . " ";
}
// outputs: A B C ... Z

3. Convert a whole string

Split a string into characters, get each character's ASCII value with ord(), and convert back with chr():

$str = "Hello";
$chars = str_split($str);
foreach ($chars as $char) {
    $ascii = ord($char);
    $convertedChar = chr($ascii);
    echo $convertedChar . " ";
}
// outputs: H e l l o

4. Special character conversion

Convert codes for spaces, line breaks, etc., for example:

$char = chr(32);
echo $char; // outputs a space

Summary

The chr() function is a simple yet powerful tool in PHP for converting ASCII codes to characters, applicable to single values, ranges, full strings, and special characters.