URL Encoder/Decoder
Encode or decode URLs for safe transmission.
How to use this tool
- Enter text or URL in the input field.
- Click 'Encode' to convert special characters to percent-encoding.
- Click 'Decode' to convert percent-encoded characters back.
- Copy the result to clipboard.
About this tool
URL Encoder/Decoder is an online, free tool that encodes and decodes URLs for safe web transmission. No registration required! URLs can only contain certain characters; this tool converts special characters (spaces, &, =, etc.) to their percent-encoded equivalents and vice versa. Essential for working with query strings and API parameters.
Frequently asked questions
What is URL encoding?
Also called percent-encoding, it replaces characters that are not safe in a URL with a percent sign and their hexadecimal byte value. A space becomes %20, an ampersand becomes %26, and a question mark becomes %3F. It is what lets arbitrary text travel inside an address.
When do I need to encode a URL?
Whenever user text goes into a query string. An unencoded ampersand ends the parameter early and silently truncates the value, an unencoded question mark starts a query string where you did not want one, and an unencoded hash turns the rest into a fragment. Search terms, email addresses and file names all need encoding.
Why does a space sometimes become %20 and sometimes a plus sign?
Two different rules. Percent-encoding, used in the path and generally in query strings, gives %20. The older form-submission encoding used by HTML forms gives +. Both are valid in their own context, but they are not interchangeable, and mixing them is a common source of broken parameters.
Should I encode the whole URL or just part of it?
Just the parts you are inserting. Encoding a complete URL escapes the colons and slashes that make it a URL at all, leaving an unusable string. Encode each parameter value on its own, then assemble the address around them.
What does decoding do?
The reverse: it turns %20 back into a space and %26 back into an ampersand, which is how you make a logged or copied URL readable when you are trying to work out what was actually sent.
Is my data uploaded anywhere?
No. Encoding and decoding both run in your browser with the built-in URI functions. Nothing is transmitted or stored.