What is URL Encoding?
URL encoding, formally known as percent-encoding, is a mechanism for safely transmitting data within a Uniform Resource Identifier (URI). Because URLs can only be sent over the Internet using the standard ASCII character-set, any characters outside of this set—or characters that have a special meaning in URLs (like spaces, `&`, `?`, or `=`)—must be converted into a valid format.
An online URL encoder solves this by converting these unsafe characters into a `%` followed by two hexadecimal digits. For example, a space becomes %20. Conversely, a URL decoder takes those percent-encoded sequences and translates them back into human-readable characters.
How to Use Our Free URL Encoder and Decoder
Our free URL encoder is designed to be the fastest and most privacy-friendly way to process your web data. Because it runs entirely within your browser using native JavaScript, your sensitive API keys, query strings, and payloads are never sent to a remote server.
To use the tool, select either "Encode" or "Decode" from the toggle switch. Paste your string into the left-hand input box, and the tool will instantly generate the result on the right. We even include an advanced "Encode lines separately" feature—if you have a multi-line list of URLs, this ensures that the newline characters themselves aren't converted into %0A, keeping your list structure intact!
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a URL encoder?
A URL encoder is a tool that safely translates reserved or non-ASCII characters in a string into a globally accepted percent-encoded format. This ensures that parameters passed through web addresses (URLs) are transmitted without breaking the structure of the HTTP request.
What is a URL decoder?
A URL decoder performs the exact opposite action of an encoder. It searches a string for percent-encoded hex sequences (like %20 or %3D) and converts them back into their original, human-readable text characters.
Is this URL encoder online secure?
Yes. Our online URL encoder runs entirely locally within your web browser using client-side code. This means your text is processed instantly on your device and is never uploaded, saved, or tracked by any external servers.