Strikethrough Text Generator

What is Strikethrough Text?

Strikethrough text — also called crossed out text, strike text, or line through text — is text with a horizontal line drawn through the middle, l̶i̶k̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶. It's created using Unicode combining characters, specifically the combining long stroke overlay (U+0336), which can be applied to any letter or number.

Our free strikethrough text generator lets you create crossed out text instantly. Just type any text, and the generator converts it using Unicode combining characters that work everywhere — no special apps, fonts, or formatting needed. The result is real text you can copy and paste into Instagram, Discord, Twitter, WhatsApp, email, or any platform.

Strikethrough text is commonly used to show corrections, indicate deleted content, express sarcasm, or add dramatic emphasis. Unlike HTML <del> or <s> tags which only work on websites, Unicode strikethrough works in any text field on any device.

How to Use the Strikethrough Generator

Creating crossed out text takes just a few seconds:

1. Type or paste your text in the input box at the top of this page
2. See instant previews of your text in 15 different strikethrough and font styles
3. Click "Copy" next to the style you want. The crossed out text is copied to your clipboard
4. Paste anywhere — Discord, Instagram, Twitter, WhatsApp, email, or any app

No account, no download, no installation. Our cross out text generator works on desktop, tablet, and mobile — any device with a web browser.

Strikethrough Text Styles

Our strike text generator offers 15 styles, including multiple strikethrough variations and decorative Unicode fonts:

Strikethrough Variations

• Strikethrough — h̶e̶l̶l̶o̶ — the classic horizontal line through text. Uses Unicode combining character U+0336. The most widely recognized cross out style
• Slash Through — h̸e̸l̸l̸o̸ — a diagonal line through each character. Uses U+0338 (combining long solidus overlay). Also called slashed text
• Tilde Through — h̴e̴l̴l̴o̴ — a wavy tilde line through text. Uses U+0334 (combining tilde overlay). Creates a scratched or scribbled effect
• Bold Strikethrough — bold Unicode text with a strikethrough line combined. Double impact: emphasis plus deletion
• Double Strikethrough — for platforms and contexts where you need extra-visible crossed out text

Line & Dot Styles

• Underline — h̲e̲l̲l̲o̲ — a line under each character using U+0332. Not strikethrough, but a related text decoration
• Double Underline — h̳e̳l̳l̳o̳ — two lines underneath using U+0333. Adds strong emphasis
• Dotted — dots above and below each character. A unique decoration style that draws attention

Decorative Unicode Fonts

• Bold — 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨 — mathematical bold characters
• Italic — 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘰 — mathematical italic
• Bold Italic — 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙤 — bold and italic combined
• Gothic — 𝔥𝔢𝔩𝔩𝔬 — fraktur medieval blackletter style
• Monospace — 𝚑𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚘 — fixed-width typewriter font
• Small Caps — ʜᴇʟʟᴏ — small capital letters
• Glitch Text — zalgo-style text with combining characters stacked above and below. Creates a corrupted, glitchy appearance

All styles work on any platform that supports Unicode. No fonts to install.

Where to Use Strikethrough Text

Discord

Discord has built-in strikethrough using ~~double tildes~~, but it only works inside Discord and only offers one style. Our strikethrough text generator gives you access to styles Discord's markdown can't create:

• Slash through — h̸e̸l̸l̸o̸ — not available in Discord markdown
• Tilde through — h̴e̴l̴l̴o̴ — different from Discord's built-in version
• Bold strikethrough — combines bold weight with strikethrough
• Dotted and underline styles — completely unavailable in Discord

Use strikethrough in Discord for:

• Corrections in channel messages
• Sarcastic or humorous effect
• Showing price changes ($49.99 $29.99)
• Server nicknames and custom statuses

Unicode strikethrough works in Discord messages, bios, server descriptions, channel topics, and custom statuses on both desktop and mobile apps.

Instagram

Instagram doesn't support any text formatting — no bold, no italic, no strikethrough. This makes our cross out text generator the only way to add strikethrough text to Instagram.

Where to use strikethrough on Instagram:

• Bio — create a witty crossed-out phrase in your profile description
• Captions — show corrections or add sarcasm to photo captions
• Comments — stand out in comment sections with crossed out text
• Stories — paste strikethrough text as a text overlay
• DMs — add emphasis or humor to direct messages

How to strikethrough on Instagram: visit this page, type your text, copy the strikethrough result, open Instagram, and paste. Works on both iOS and Android.

Twitter / X

Twitter doesn't support any native text formatting. Unicode strikethrough lets you cross out text in tweets, replies, bios, and display names.

Popular uses on Twitter:

• Showing corrections: "This is the b̶e̶s̶t̶ worst take"
• Sarcastic commentary
• Indicating changed opinions
• Price comparisons in promotional tweets

Strikethrough text works in both the Twitter app and web version.

WhatsApp

WhatsApp supports basic strikethrough using ~tildes~, but Unicode strikethrough from our generator gives you additional options:

• Slash through style that WhatsApp can't create
• Tilde through for a different visual effect
• Bold strikethrough for extra emphasis
• Underline and double underline styles

Email

Unicode strikethrough works in virtually all modern email clients. Use it in:

• Gmail, Outlook, Apple Mail, Yahoo Mail
• Subject lines and body text
• Professional contexts (showing edited content)
• Marketing emails (price reductions, limited offers)

Note: while rich text editors in some email clients offer built-in strikethrough buttons, our Unicode approach works even in plain text emails where formatting options aren't available.

Other Platforms

Strikethrough text works on any platform supporting Unicode:

• Facebook — posts, comments, Messenger, group descriptions
• TikTok — bio, comments, video descriptions
• YouTube — comments, channel descriptions, community posts
• Reddit — posts and comments (Reddit also supports markdown strikethrough)
• Telegram — messages, channel descriptions, bios
• LinkedIn — posts, comments, headline
• Slack — messages (Slack also has built-in strikethrough)

How Strikethrough Text Works (Technical Details)

Unicode strikethrough is not a separate font or character set. Instead, it uses combining characters — invisible modifiers that visually alter the preceding character.

The standard strikethrough uses U+0336 (COMBINING LONG STROKE OVERLAY). When this character is placed after a regular letter, the rendering engine draws a horizontal line through it. For example: "H" + U+0336 = "H̶".

Different strikethrough styles use different combining characters:

• Strikethrough: U+0336 — horizontal line
• Slash through: U+0338 — diagonal line (long solidus overlay)
• Tilde through: U+0334 — wavy tilde line
• Underline: U+0332 — line below
• Double underline: U+0333 — two lines below

Our strikethrough font generator applies the appropriate combining character after every letter in your text. The result is standard Unicode text that any modern device can display — no special fonts or software required.

Because combining characters are part of the Unicode standard, they're supported across all major operating systems (Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Linux) and browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge). The visual appearance may vary slightly between systems, but the text remains universally readable.

Common Use Cases for Strikethrough

Corrections and Edits

The most traditional use of strikethrough: showing what was changed. Instead of deleting text, cross it out so readers can see the original alongside the correction:

• "The meeting is at 3̶P̶M̶ 4PM"
• "We need 1̶0̶ 12 copies"

Sarcasm and Humor

Strikethrough has become a staple of internet humor. The crossed-out text creates a "thinking out loud" effect — as if you typed something, reconsidered, but left it visible:

• "What a g̶r̶e̶a̶t̶ interesting idea"
• "I'm f̶i̶n̶e̶ doing great"

Marketing and Sales

Crossed out pricing is a classic marketing technique. Use strikethrough to highlight discounts and price reductions:

• "Was $̶9̶9̶ — now $49"
• "P̶r̶e̶m̶i̶u̶m̶ ̶p̶l̶a̶n̶ FREE for a limited time"

Creative Writing

Writers use strikethrough for artistic effect — showing a character's internal monologue, unreliable narration, or censored content. It adds a layer of meaning that regular text can't convey.

Tips for Using Strikethrough Effectively

1. Use sparingly — too much crossed out text becomes unreadable. Use it for key words or short phrases, not full paragraphs
2. Choose the right style — classic strikethrough for corrections, slash through for emphasis, tilde through for creative/playful contexts
3. Test readability — some fonts render combining characters better than others. Check how your strikethrough looks on mobile before posting
4. Combine with regular text — strikethrough works best as contrast against normal text. "I'm not t̶i̶r̶e̶d̶ at all" reads better than fully crossed-out sentences
5. Consider accessibility — screen readers handle combining characters differently. For critical content, provide context beyond the visual strikethrough

Frequently Asked Questions