URL encoder and decoder

How it works

1. Paste the text or the URL. The result appears as you type.
2. Choose Encode or Decode.
3. Tick “Treat it as a whole URL” when the text is a complete address, so the characters that give it its structure survive. Leave it off for a single value going into a query string — that is the case where they must not.
4. Copy the result.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between the two modes?

Encoding a whole URL keeps the characters that make it a URL — : / ? # & = — so https://example.com/a b becomes https://example.com/a%20b. Encoding a value does not: a search term or a redirect URL going inside ?q= must have its own & and = encoded, or it ends the parameter early and quietly breaks the link. When in doubt about a single parameter, leave the box unticked.

Is my URL sent anywhere?

No. It is converted in this page. Links carry session tokens, signed URLs and internal hostnames often enough that this is worth saying.

Why did decoding fail?

Because a % in the text is not followed by two hexadecimal digits, which is what percent-encoding means. Text containing a literal per-cent sign — “50% off” — is not encoded text, and decoding it is not defined. Encode it first if that is what you need.

Does it handle accents and non-Latin text?

Yes. Characters are encoded as UTF-8 bytes, which is what browsers and servers expect: é becomes %C3%A9 and 日本語 becomes %E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%E8%AA%9E. Decoding takes them back.

What about spaces becoming + signs?

That is a different convention, used in old HTML form submissions, where a space is written as + rather than %20. Both are accepted by servers in a query string; this tool writes %20, which is correct everywhere including in a path.