URL Encoder - Decoder
Encode or decode URLs instantly. Everything runs locally in your browser.
Status
0
Characters
0 B
Input Size
0 B
Output Size
-
Encoding
Privacy
Everything is processed locally in your browser. Your data is never uploaded or stored.
How To Use
Paste your text or URL
into the Input editor, or upload a file.
Choose an action
Encode to escape special characters, or Decode to unescape them.
Review the result
in the Output editor.
Check the status
panel for details about the latest operation.
Copy the result
to your clipboard for use elsewhere.
About URL Encoder - Decoder
The DevToolVerse URL Encoder - Decoder helps you encode and decode URLs directly in your browser. Whether you're building query strings, debugging API requests, or inspecting percent-encoded values, this tool makes it easy to convert between readable text and URL-safe formats.
All processing happens locally in your browser, meaning your data is never uploaded to a server. This keeps your text private while providing fast, accurate encoding and decoding.
Features
Encode URLs
converts special characters into a URL-safe format.
Decode URLs
converts percent-encoded sequences back into readable text.
Upload text files
for quick encoding or decoding.
Copy input or output
to your clipboard with one click.
Automatic statistics
including character count, input size, output size and encoding type.
Runs entirely in your browser
your data never leaves your device.
How URL Encoding Works
URL encoding (percent-encoding) converts characters in a piece of text into percent-encoded UTF-8 sequences — each byte becomes % followed by two hex digits.
This tool is built for encoding and decoding URL components — a query parameter value or a path segment — using encodeURIComponent() and decodeURIComponent(). It does not parse a complete URL into scheme, host, path, query and fragment, so encoding a complete URL will also percent-encode its structural characters. Decode simply reverses the process, turning percent-encoded text back into readable text.
Input
hello world & friends
Encoded
hello%20world%20%26%20friends
Quick Reference
URL encoding replaces reserved characters with percent-encoded values so they can be safely transmitted in URLs. Below are some of the most commonly encoded characters.
| Character | Encoded Value |
|---|---|
| Space | %20 |
| % | %25 |
| & | %26 |
| + | %2B |
| / | %2F |
| : | %3A |
| = | %3D |
| ? | %3F |
| @ | %40 |
| # | %23 |
DevToolVerse uses JavaScript's encodeURIComponent() and decodeURIComponent() for UTF-8 percent-encoding and decoding — the same functions built into every browser. One detail worth knowing: these functions leave ! * ' ( ) unescaped.
Common URL Encoding Mistakes
Encoding a Complete URL
Encoding https://example.com/search?q=hello world will also percent-encode :, /, ?, and = — this tool treats the entire input as one component, not a structured URL. Encode just the query parameter value (for example, "hello world") when that's what you actually need.
Expecting + to Mean Space
encodeURIComponent(" ") produces %20, not +, and decodeURIComponent("hello+world") leaves the + unchanged rather than turning it into a space. The + -for-space convention belongs to form/query-string encoding (application/x-www-form-urlencoded), not to this tool.
Double-Encoding
Encoding text that's already percent-encoded escapes the % itself — %20 becomes %2520. Avoid re-encoding a value that's already encoded unless double-encoding is genuinely what you need.
Malformed Percent-Encoding
Sequences like a lone % or %ZZ can't be decoded. Rather than returning partial or corrupted output, the tool reports "Invalid URL Encoding" so you know the input needs to be fixed.
Encoding vs. Decoding
Encode turns readable text into percent-encoded text; Decode reverses it.
Example: Encoding a Query Value
Input
coffee & cafés
Encoded
coffee%20%26%20caf%C3%A9s
The space becomes %20, & becomes %26, and é — not part of ASCII — is represented as its UTF-8 byte sequence and percent-encoded byte by byte.
If a decoded URL parameter turns out to contain JSON, you can pass that decoded value to JSON Formatter to validate and format it.
FAQ
URL encoding (percent-encoding) converts characters that are not allowed in a URL into a "%" followed by two hexadecimal digits, so the URL can be transmitted safely.
Yes. The URL Encoder - Decoder is completely free to use with no registration required.
No. Everything is processed locally in your browser. Your text is never uploaded to any server.
Encode converts readable text into a URL-safe percent-encoded format. Decode converts percent-encoded text back into its original, readable form.
Yes. You can upload a text file and its contents will be loaded into the input editor.
You can paste a complete URL, but this tool encodes the entire input as one URL component, so characters such as :, /, ?, = and & will also be percent-encoded. For most complete-URL workflows, encode the individual component or parameter value instead.