What is Lorem Ipsum?
Lorem ipsum is a scrambled passage from Cicero's "de Finibus Bonorum et Malorum" written in 45 BC. It became the printing industry's standard dummy text in the 1500s and remains the standard placeholder text in design and development today.
The reason it persists: its randomized combination of letters loosely mimics the visual pattern of real text, allowing designers to evaluate layouts without getting distracted by readable content.
When to Use Lorem Ipsum
- UI mockups: Fill text areas to test layout and typography before real content is ready.
- Web development: Populate templates and CMS demos with realistic-looking text.
- Presentations: Show content placeholders in wireframes and slide decks.
- Print design: Fill pages in brochure or magazine layouts during the design phase.
⚠️ When NOT to Use Lorem Ipsum: User testing — real users should test with real content. Client presentations — clients sometimes approve layouts without realizing placeholder text will be replaced.
How to Use the Lorem Ipsum Generator
1Open the Lorem Ipsum Generator.
2Choose your unit: paragraphs, sentences, or words.
3Set the count (e.g., 3 paragraphs, 10 sentences, or 50 words).
4Toggle "Start with Lorem ipsum..." if you want the classic opening line.
5Copy the generated text and paste it into your design.
Alternatives to Lorem Ipsum
- Real content first: The best practice is to design with real content whenever possible.
- Cupcake Ipsum: Food-themed placeholder text — more fun for casual projects.
- Corporate Ipsum: Business jargon filler — great for corporate templates.
- Bacon Ipsum: Meat-themed placeholder — memorable for food-related projects.
FAQ
Is Lorem Ipsum in a real language?
It's based on Latin but heavily scrambled — the original Latin text has been altered so it doesn't make grammatical sense. It's designed to look like text, not be read as text.