URL Encoder

About URL encoder

Percent-encodes text so it can sit safely inside a URL. It follows the same rules as JavaScript's encodeURIComponent: letters, digits and a few punctuation marks pass through, and everything else becomes a percent sign followed by the UTF-8 bytes in hexadecimal.

How to use it

1. Keep the Encode URL tab selected, since it is the default view.
2. Enter the value you want to protect in the Text to Encode box.
3. Press Encode URL.
4. Copy the text from the URL Encoded Result panel and paste it into your query string or link.

A query string value with reserved characters

name=Jane Doe&city=São Paulo

name%3DJane%20Doe%26city%3DS%C3%A3o%20Paulo

When to use it

• Adding a search term that contains an ampersand or equals sign to a query parameter.
• Passing an entire link as the redirect_uri value in an OAuth request.
• Writing a mailto link whose subject line includes spaces and punctuation.
• Turning non-English words into the %XX form that older systems and logs expect.

Questions about URL encoder

Why are the colons and slashes encoded too?

The function is designed for one component of a URL, such as a single parameter value. Encode the values and leave the surrounding structure alone, or the link will stop being clickable.

Does a space become %20 or a plus sign?

It becomes %20. Plus signs belong to form-encoded request bodies, and a literal plus in your text is written as %2B, so a+b c comes out as a%2Bb%20c.

What happens to letters like ã or ü?

Each is turned into its UTF-8 bytes and every byte is written as %XX. The letter ã, for example, becomes %C3%A3.

Should I encode a value twice to be safe?

No. Encoding twice turns each percent sign into %25, so the receiving side has to decode twice as well and most will not.

Does anything leave my browser?

No. Encoding is a built-in browser function that runs locally in the tab, so your text is never posted to any server.

Related tools

• Base64 encoderEncode any string input to Base64.
• URL decoderDecode URL input to back to a normal string.
• Image to Base64Transform an image input to a Base64 string.
• Base64 decoderDecode Base64 input to back to string.
• Base64 to ImageDecode Base64 input to an image.
• Binary converterConvert text to binary and the other way for any string input.