ascii()

Returns the numeric code of the first character of the argument. In UTF8 encoding, returns the Unicode code point of the character. In other multibyte encodings, the argument must be an ASCII character.

Signature

ascii ( text ) → integer

Examples

SELECT ascii('x');
120

Run against PostgreSQL 18.6 on 2026-09-13. This is the output we got, not the documentation’s.

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Signature and description adapted from the PostgreSQL manual, used under the PostgreSQL License. PostgreSQL is a registered trademark of the PostgreSQL Community Association of Canada. This page is not affiliated with the PostgreSQL Global Development Group.