URL Encoder Decoder Online - Free & Fast Tool

Our free URL Encoder Decoder tool helps you encode or decode any string or URL instantly

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As a digital marketing professional, SEO professional, or developer, this tool helps you quickly and efficiently work with percent encoding, special characters, and URL formatting.

What is URL Encoding and Decoding?

All internet URLs are regulated strictly. Certain characters can't be placed directly in a website URL, and certain ones have meaning. In order for a browser or server to be able to read them correctly, the characters are converted into a safe substitute using URL encoding. Where there is a need, the process is reversed with URL decoding.

What is URL Encoding?

You can substitute harmful characters in a string by using URL encoding, which uses a format that can safely travel over the internet. Each and every character is substituted with the percent symbol and two hexadecimal numerals.

For example:

A space is replaced with %20

A question mark ? is replaced with %3F

An ampersand & is replaced with %26

This method is also called percent encoding.

What is URL Decoding?

URL decoding is the reverse process. It converts the encoded values back into their character forms so that the text becomes readable by humans once more. For example, %20 is a space.

URI vs URL

The majority of people confuse the terms URI (Uniform Resource Identifier) and URL (Uniform Resource Locator). This is where the difference lies:

A URI is a generic resource identifier, which could be a name, an address, or both.

A URL, such as https://example.com/page, is a type of URI that specifically identifies the location of a resource.

Reserved and Unreserved Characters

Web address characters are divided into two categories:

Unreserved characters: Letters, digits, and punctuation like -, _, ., and ~. These don't need to be encoded.
Reserved characters: Special characters like ?, &, /, and = in a URL. If placed in text, they must be encoded.

Example:

When you place & inside the value of a query string, it should be represented as %26 so it won't destroy the link.

Application/x-www-form-urlencoded

When you submit an HTML form, the data is sent usually in application/x-www-form-urlencoded format. In this format:

Spaces are encoded as + (plus signs).
Special characters are represented as percent values.

It ensures that form data is sent securely to the server without confusion.

How to Use the Tool

It is extremely easy to use our online URL Encoder Decoder and it takes only seconds. No sign-up, no downloads, quick and guaranteed results.:

In the input field, paste your text or URL.
Click on Encode to encode it into a URL-safe format.
Click on Decode to decode encoded text to normal characters.
Copy the output and utilize it in your projects.

Common Use Cases

Web Development

Programmers like to encode URLs when working with query strings, API requests, or URI schemes. Encoding stops special characters from causing the application to break.

SEO

Search engines prefer clean, well-structured URLs. Encoding prevents crawl errors, broken links, and indexing issues.

Digital Marketing

Marketers often build campaign URLs with a set of tracking parameters. Encoding guarantees that these links work correctly on channels like email, social media, and advertising.

Explore Our Other Free Tools:

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is the difference between URL encode and decode?

Encoding converts characters into a secure form, and decoding restores them to their original form.

When should I use a URL encoder?

If there are spaces, special characters, or non-ASCII characters in your URL, use encoding.

Does URL encoding affect SEO?

Yes. Properly encoded URLs assist search engines to crawl and index your site in the correct manner.

What characters are affected by URL encoding?

Encoding is required for reserved characters such as?, &, /, =, and spaces.

Is this tool free?

Yes! Our URL Encoder Decoder tool is 100% free to use with no hidden costs.

Online URL Encode/Decode