How you're doing
| Character | Code | Sent | Right | Score |
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No sessions yet.
Your progress stays in this browser. Characters you miss more than one time in ten turn red, and come up more often.
How it works
This is the Koch method, the way most people now learn Morse code. Each session sends random groups of five characters, using only the ones you have learned so far. You type what you hear. Score 90% or better and the next character joins in; score less and you stay where you are for another go. The newest character comes up twice as often as the others, and any you keep missing come up more.
You start with K and M, and the lessons follow this order, the one LCWO.net uses:
K M U R E S N A P T L W I . J Z = F O Y , V G 5 / Q 9 2 H 3 8 B ? 4 7 C 1 D 6 0 X
That is all 26 letters, the numbers, and the five punctuation marks most used on the air: . , ? / and =.
Why the letters are fast and the gaps are slow
Each character plays at the character speed, 20 words a minute to start. That is too fast to count dots, which is the point: you learn the sound of the whole letter, the way you'd know a word without spelling it. The overall speed stretches the silence between characters instead, so you still have time to type. That's Farnsworth spacing, timed by the ARRL's formula. As copying gets easy, raise the overall speed toward the character speed.
Speeds are in words per minute on the PARIS standard, the same timing as our Morse code translator. For a chart to keep beside you, print the Morse code chart, but try not to look at it while you listen.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Koch method of learning Morse code?
A way of learning Morse by ear, published by Ludwig Koch in Germany in 1936. You start with just two characters sent at full speed, copy random groups of them, and add one more character each time you get 90% right. Every letter is learned as a sound, never counted out as dots and dashes.
Why does the Koch method start with K and M?
Because they sound nothing alike: dah-di-dah and dah-dah. The order here is the one LCWO.net and most Koch trainers use, which mixes letters, numbers and punctuation so similar-sounding characters arrive apart.
What is Farnsworth spacing?
Sending each character at full speed but leaving longer gaps between characters and words, so you have time to think while every letter keeps its real rhythm. As you get faster, raise the overall speed toward the character speed until the gaps are standard.
What speed should I learn Morse code at?
Fast enough that you can't count the dots: a character speed of 18 to 20 words per minute is where most trainers start, with Farnsworth spacing to slow the overall pace. Learning at 5 wpm teaches you to count, a habit that has to be unlearned later.
How long does it take to learn Morse code?
It depends on how often you practice. There are 40 lessons here, and each takes at least one session at 90%. Short sessions most days work better than long ones now and then; ten or fifteen minutes is plenty.
Do I need a license to learn Morse code?
No. Anyone can learn and listen. In the US, the FCC dropped Morse code from the amateur radio license exams in 2007, so you don't need it for a license either, though many hams still learn it for the fun of it.
Does the trainer save my progress?
Yes, in this browser only: your lesson and how often you get each character right are kept on this device and never sent anywhere. Clearing the site's data, or a private window, starts you from the beginning.
Keep going on your phone
Covert Mail, our free app for learning codes, teaches Morse the same way: by ear, in the same Koch order, with two new characters in each mission and stars for how well you copy them. On the way you'll copy SOS and Morse's own first message, What hath God wrought, and a second track has you send Morse on a key instead of hearing it. It plays Morse as a tone, a flashing light or a buzz, and it is free on the App Store.
Download on the App Store▶ Coming soon to Google Play
More codes: the Morse code translator, the tap code, the NATO phonetic alphabet and twelve more codes and ciphers.