Free URL Encoder / Decoder
Encode plain text to URL-safe format or decode percent-encoded strings instantly. No signup required — all processing happens in your browser.
Component mode encodes everything including ://?=&# — safe for query parameter values.
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Use it right away, no account
Runs in your browser
Your input never leaves your device
What Is URL Encoding?
URLs can only contain a limited set of ASCII characters. Percent-encoding converts special characters, spaces, and non-ASCII text into a safe format using a % followed by two hex digits — ensuring your URLs work correctly across every browser, server, and API.
Safe Transmission
Percent-encoding ensures special characters in query strings and path segments do not break the URL structure or get misinterpreted by servers.
Internationalization
Non-ASCII characters like accented letters, Chinese, Arabic, or emoji must be encoded before being placed in a URL.
Security
Properly encoding user-supplied input before embedding it in URLs helps prevent parameter injection and ensures correct query string parsing.
How to Use the Tool
Encode or decode any URL in four simple steps.
Choose a Mode
Pick "Component mode" for query values or "Full URL mode" for complete URLs. Toggle auto-encode for real-time results.
Paste Your Text
Enter plain text in the top box to encode, or paste an encoded string in the bottom box to decode.
Click Encode or Decode
Hit the Encode button to convert down, or Decode to convert up. With auto-mode on, results appear as you type.
Copy & Use
Click the Copy button next to either textarea to copy the result to your clipboard instantly.
Who Uses This Tool
From frontend engineers to SEO specialists — anyone who works with URLs.
Web Developers
Encode query parameters before appending to URLs in fetch requests, forms, or redirects.
SEO Specialists
Decode encoded URLs from log files, crawl reports, or analytics to identify the actual paths.
E-commerce Teams
Encode UTM parameters, product names, and filter values for tracking links and campaigns.
Security Engineers
Inspect how payloads and user input look when percent-encoded or decoded while testing input handling.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is URL encoding?
URL encoding (percent-encoding) converts characters that are not allowed in URLs into a % followed by two hexadecimal digits. For example, a space becomes %20 and & becomes %26. This ensures URLs are transmitted correctly across the internet.
What is the difference between encodeURI and encodeURIComponent?
encodeURI encodes a complete URL — it leaves characters like ://?=&#& intact so the URL remains valid. encodeURIComponent encodes everything including those special characters, making it safe for encoding individual query parameter values.
When should I use Component mode vs Full URL mode?
Use Component mode (encodeURIComponent) when encoding a single query parameter value, a path segment, or any text that will be placed inside a URL. Use Full URL mode (encodeURI) when encoding a complete URL that should remain navigable.
Is my data sent to a server?
No. All encoding and decoding happens entirely in your browser using the built-in JavaScript encodeURIComponent and encodeURI functions. No data is transmitted to any server.
What characters does URL encoding affect?
Component mode (encodeURIComponent) leaves only A–Z, a–z, 0–9 and - _ . ! ~ * ' ( ) unencoded; everything else — spaces, reserved characters like / ? & = #, and non-ASCII text — is percent-encoded. Full URL mode (encodeURI) additionally leaves the reserved URL characters ; , / ? : @ & = + $ # intact. When decoding, you can optionally treat + as a space, as in form-encoded query strings.
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Key terms explained
Plain-English definitions from the LazySEO SEO glossary.