Find Top Letters
Analyze character frequency, distribution, and density in your text.
Frequency Distribution
Start typing or upload text to see the chart
Top Occurrences
Analysis Settings
Find Top Letters – Free Letter Frequency Analyzer
Discover the hidden patterns in your text with our powerful letter frequency analyzer. Instantly see which characters appear most often, calculate percentage distributions, and visualize results with interactive charts. Essential for cryptanalysis, stylometry, linguistics research, and understanding the DNA of any document. 100% free with complete browser-based privacy.
What Is Letter Frequency Analysis?
Letter frequency analysis examines how often each character appears in a piece of text. In English, the letter 'E' dominates at roughly 11-13% of all text, followed by 'T', 'A', 'O', and 'I'. These patterns are remarkably consistent across different texts and have been studied for centuries.
This tool counts every character in your input, calculates percentages, and displays the results in an easy-to-read chart. Whether you're breaking a cipher, studying an author's writing style, or just curious about your own text, you'll get instant, visual insights.
Who Uses Frequency Analysis?
Cryptographers
Break substitution ciphers by matching letter frequencies to known language patterns. The classic cryptanalysis technique.
Linguists & Researchers
Study language patterns, compare dialects, or analyze historical texts. Each language has its unique frequency fingerprint.
Developers
Analyze code syntax patterns, optimize compression algorithms, or study character distributions in datasets.
Analysis Features
Visual Charts
Proportional bar charts show dominant characters at a glance with percentage data.
Smart Filtering
Toggle to ignore numbers, spaces, or punctuation—focus on the data you need.
Flexible Sorting
Sort by frequency to find winners, or alphabetically to check for patterns.
File Upload
Upload .txt or .md files for instant analysis of large documents.
Instant Processing
Analyze massive text blocks instantly—no loading, no limits.
100% Private
All processing in your browser. Your text never leaves your device.
How to Use the Letter Frequency Analyzer
- Paste your text or upload a .txt/.md file into the input area.
- Configure filters using the toggles (ignore spaces, numbers, punctuation, case sensitivity).
- View the results instantly as a sorted chart showing each character's count and percentage.
- Export or copy the data for further analysis or documentation.
Why Analyze Letter Frequency?
Beyond curiosity, letter frequency has practical applications:
- Cryptanalysis: Breaking substitution ciphers by matching frequency patterns to known language norms.
- Data Compression: Algorithms like Huffman coding assign shorter codes to frequent characters.
- Stylometry: Identifying authors by their unique character usage patterns.
- Keyboard Design: Efficient layouts place frequent letters on the home row (like Dvorak).
- Language Learning: Understanding which letters to prioritize when learning new alphabets.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this letter frequency tool completely free?
Yes, 100% free with no usage limits, registration, or hidden costs. Analyze as much text as you need.
Is my text data private and secure?
Absolutely. All analysis happens in your browser using JavaScript. Your text is never uploaded to any server—perfect for analyzing confidential documents.
What is the most common letter in English?
The letter 'E' is the most common in English text, appearing in about 11-13% of all text. This is followed by 'T' (9%), 'A' (8%), 'O' (7.5%), and 'I' (7%). This tool lets you verify these patterns in your own writing.
How does case sensitivity affect the analysis?
With 'Case Sensitive' ON, 'A' and 'a' are counted separately. With it OFF (default), they're combined. Use case sensitivity when analyzing code or studying capitalization patterns.
Can I analyze programming code with this tool?
Yes! Uncheck 'Ignore Punctuation' to analyze brackets, semicolons, operators, and other symbols. Great for understanding code structure or detecting syntax patterns.
What is letter frequency analysis used for?
Common uses include: cryptanalysis (breaking substitution ciphers), stylometry (author identification), data compression algorithms, keyboard layout design, language learning, and SEO content optimization.
Can I upload files instead of pasting text?
Yes, you can upload .txt or .md files directly. The tool processes them instantly in your browser—useful for analyzing large documents or entire manuscripts.
How is this different from Find Top Words?
This tool analyzes individual CHARACTERS/LETTERS. 'Find Top Words' analyzes complete WORDS. Use letters for cryptanalysis and character patterns; use words for content analysis and keyword research.
Can I analyze text in other languages?
Yes! The tool counts any Unicode characters. Different languages have different frequency patterns—French uses more accented characters, German has umlauts. The tool captures all characters in your text.
What do the percentage values mean?
The percentage shows what portion of all counted characters each letter represents. If 'E' shows 12%, it means 12% of all characters in your text are the letter E.
Can I exclude spaces and numbers from the count?
Yes! Use the filter toggles to ignore whitespace, numbers, or punctuation. This focuses the analysis on just the letters, giving you cleaner frequency data.
Is there a limit to how much text I can analyze?
No artificial limit. Since processing happens in your browser, you can analyze novels, code repositories, or any large text. Modern devices handle millions of characters instantly.