Hash Generator
Generate hashes from text or files, and compare them against a known hash.
About the algorithms
MD5
128-bit digest, 32 hex characters. Very fast but cryptographically broken — collisions can be created deliberately. Still common for quick file checksums, not for security.
SHA-1
160-bit digest, 40 hex characters. Deprecated for security use since practical collisions were found, but still seen in legacy systems and Git object IDs.
SHA-256
256-bit digest, 64 hex characters. Part of the SHA-2 family and the most widely used general-purpose hash today — signatures, certificates, blockchains.
SHA-384
384-bit digest, 96 hex characters. A truncated variant of SHA-512, used where a longer digest than SHA-256 is preferred.
SHA-512
512-bit digest, 128 hex characters. Part of the SHA-2 family, often faster than SHA-256 on 64-bit systems.
SHA3-256
256-bit digest, 64 hex characters. Part of the newer SHA-3 family, built on a different design (Keccak) than SHA-2, as a hedge against future SHA-2 weaknesses.
SHA3-512
512-bit digest, 128 hex characters. The larger-digest member of the SHA-3 family.
RIPEMD-160
160-bit digest, 40 hex characters. Best known for its role in generating Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency addresses.
CRC32
32-bit digest, 8 hex characters. Not cryptographic — a lightweight checksum for catching accidental corruption, used in ZIP files and network protocols.
What is hashing?
A hash function takes any input — text, a file, anything — and turns it into a fixed-length string of characters, called a hash or digest. The same input always produces the same hash, but even a tiny change to the input produces a completely different one. Hashes only go one way: you can't reverse a hash back into the original input.
In practice, hashes are used to verify that a file downloaded correctly (comparing it against a published checksum), to store passwords without keeping the actual password on file, to detect duplicate files, and to fingerprint data in version control systems, digital signatures, and blockchains.
Using this tool
Switch between Text and File input, tick the algorithms you want, and press Generate Hashes. Use uppercase if the system you're comparing against expects that format. To check whether your data matches a hash someone gave you, paste it into the Compare box below your results — it will highlight a match automatically.