URL Encoder / Decoder

Encode or decode URLs and query string parameters instantly. Free, client-side tool. No data sent to any server.

Mode
Encoded result
Result will appear here...

What is URL encoding?

URL encoding (also called percent-encoding) replaces characters that are not allowed in a URL with a percent sign followed by their hexadecimal value. For example, a space becomes %20 and an ampersand becomes %26.

When to use URL encoding

  • Passing user input as URL query parameters
  • Encoding special characters in API requests
  • Building URLs that contain non-ASCII characters
  • Encoding form data for HTTP POST requests

Characters that must be encoded

The following characters have special meaning in URLs and must be percent-encoded when used as data: : / ? # [ ] @ ! $ & ' ( ) * + , ; = as well as spaces and non-ASCII characters.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between encodeURI and encodeURIComponent? encodeURI encodes a full URL but preserves characters like :, /, and ? that have structural meaning. encodeURIComponent encodes everything except unreserved characters, making it suitable for individual query parameter values. This tool uses encodeURIComponent.

Is my data sent to a server? No. All encoding and decoding happens entirely in your browser.

What does "Encode all characters" do? By default, unreserved characters like hyphens, underscores, periods, and tildes are left as-is. The "Encode all" option percent-encodes everything except letters and digits.