URL Encoder/Decoder
Encode special characters for URLs or decode percent-encoded strings back to readable text.
Common URL Encodings
| Character | Encoded | Character | Encoded |
|---|---|---|---|
| Space | %20 | ! | %21 |
| # | %23 | $ | %24 |
| & | %26 | ' | %27 |
| ( | %28 | ) | %29 |
| + | %2B | = | %3D |
| ? | %3F | @ | %40 |
How to Use URL Encoder/Decoder
How to Use the URL Encoder/Decoder
- Select mode: Choose Encode (text to URL-safe) or Decode (URL-encoded to text).
- Enter input: Paste or type your text or URL-encoded string.
- Optional settings: Choose encoding standard and space handling (+ or %20).
- View result: See the encoded/decoded output instantly.
- Copy output: Copy the result to use in your URLs or applications.
Encoding Example
Input: Hello World! How are you?
Output: Hello%20World%21%20How%20are%20you%3F
Decoding Example
Input: search%3Fq%3Dcoffee%20shops%26city%3DNew%20York
Output: search?q=coffee shops&city=New York
Features
- URL encode any text
- URL decode encoded strings
- Handle all special characters
- UTF-8 and Unicode support
- Choice of space encoding (+ or %20)
- Encode full URLs or just values
- Component-level encoding option
- Real-time conversion
- Bulk text processing
- One-click copy
- Mobile-friendly design
- No registration required
About URL Encoder/Decoder
URLs can only contain specific ASCII characters. Spaces, special characters, and international text must be encoded to transmit safely in web addresses. Our tool handles both encoding (preparing data for URLs) and decoding (extracting original content from encoded URLs).
Why URL Encoding Matters
Characters like spaces, &, =, and ? have special meanings in URLs. Without encoding, "coffee & tea" in a search query would break URL parsing. Encoded as "coffee%20%26%20tea", it transmits safely. International characters (日本語, Ελληνικά) require encoding to work in URLs at all.
Encoding Standards
- Percent-Encoding: Characters become %XX where XX is the hex ASCII code
- Space Handling: Becomes %20 in paths, + in query strings (by convention)
- UTF-8: Non-ASCII characters encode as UTF-8 byte sequences
- Reserved Characters: &, =, ?, / have special meanings and need encoding in data
Common Scenarios
Building API URLs with user input requires encoding parameters. Debugging why a URL doesn't work often reveals encoding issues. Extracting parameters from URLs requires decoding to see actual values. Our tool handles these tasks instantly.