Why does my Arabic text appear backwards?

Software lays out text using the Unicode bidirectional algorithm. Inside a left-to-right context, an Arabic run mixed with digits, punctuation, or Latin words can be reordered incorrectly because the surrounding weak and neutral characters resolve to the wrong direction. Wrapping the run in an explicit RTL control forces the right order.

What is the difference between an isolate and an embedding?

An isolate (RLI…PDI or FSI…PDI) sets the direction for its contents while hiding them from the surrounding bidi calculation, so it cannot leak into neighbouring text. The older embedding (RLE…PDF) sets direction but still participates in the outer context. Isolates are the modern recommendation.

When should I use plain RLM marks?

The right-to-left mark (RLM) is an invisible zero-width character that nudges adjacent neutral characters to resolve as RTL. Bracketing a snippet with RLM on both sides is the lightest-weight fix and is handy when you only need to correct trailing punctuation, but full isolates are more robust for mixed content.

Will these characters show up visibly?

No. All of the controls — RLM, RLE, PDF, RLI, FSI, PDI — are zero-width and invisible. They affect ordering only. The visible characters of your text are unchanged; the snippet just renders in the correct direction.

Does the tool send my text anywhere?

No. It simply prepends and appends Unicode control characters in your browser. Nothing is uploaded, and the copy button puts the result, controls included, onto your clipboard.

Arabic RTL Direction Fixer

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Make Arabic read the right way in LTR apps

You paste a clean Arabic phrase into a left-to-right field — a button label, a JSON value, a chat message — and the punctuation jumps to the wrong side or the whole run reverses. The text is fine; the layout engine just resolved its direction wrong. This tool wraps the snippet in the correct invisible Unicode bidi controls so it renders properly wherever you paste it.

How it works

The Unicode bidirectional algorithm decides direction from the characters present and their context. By bracketing your text with explicit control characters, you override that guess for just that run. The tool offers four methods, strongest isolation first:

RLI…PDI — right-to-left isolate. Sets RTL and hides the run from the outer context (recommended).
FSI…PDI — first-strong isolate. Direction is taken from the first strong character inside.
RLE…PDF — legacy RTL embedding. Sets RTL but still interacts with surrounding text.
RLM marks — lightweight zero-width bracketing for neutral characters.

A live preview renders the wrapped output inside a deliberately left-to-right box so you can confirm the fix before copying.

Tips and notes

Reach for the isolate methods (RLI…PDI or FSI…PDI) first — because they are sealed off from the surrounding text, they fix your Arabic run without accidentally flipping the rest of the line. Use the legacy embedding only when you must support an environment that predates isolates. The RLM bracketing is perfect for the common case where only a trailing parenthesis or period lands on the wrong side. Remember the added characters are invisible, so the copied string is slightly longer than what you see.