When should I use encodeURIComponent vs encodeURI?

Use encodeURIComponent for individual query parameter values (it encodes characters like &, =, /). Use encodeURI when encoding a whole URL string (it preserves URL structural characters).

Is URL encoding reversible?

Yes. Decoding returns the original string when the encoded input is valid. URL encoding is not encryption.

Does this tool upload my data?

No. All processing happens in your browser. Nothing is uploaded to the server.

Which characters must be percent-encoded?

Reserved characters (such as : / ? # [ ] @ ! $ & ' ( ) * + , ; =) and non-ASCII characters must be percent-encoded when used in parts of a URL where they are not allowed.

URL Encoder & Decoder – Free Online Tool

Input

Paste text or URL here

Output

About this URL encoder/decoder

This URL Encoder & Decoder helps you percent-encode or decode URLs and strings. Use encodeURIComponent to safely encode query parameter values and encodeURI to encode full URLs. The tool runs entirely in your browser — your data never leaves your device.

URL Encoding — Why it matters

URL encoding (percent-encoding) converts characters into a format that can be transmitted over the Internet. Characters outside the ASCII set, spaces, and reserved characters like &, =, #, and ? must be encoded when included in query strings or path segments. Failing to do so can break links, allow injection of unexpected characters, or cause incorrect parsing by servers and clients.

Quick best practices

Always use encodeURIComponent for individual query parameter values.
Use encodeURI when you need to encode a full URL but preserve URL delimiters.
When decoding, prefer decodeURIComponent for values and gracefully fallback to decodeURI if needed.
For safe transmission of non-ASCII characters (e.g., Hindi, emojis), ensure your page uses UTF-8 encoding (this page does).

Related developer tools

Try other free tools on SoftPixelWeb for cleaning and transforming data: JSON Super Viewer, CSV → JSON, JSON → CSV.