URL Encode & Decode Online — Free, Instant, No Install

How to URL encode and decode online for free

Paste the text or URL you want to encode into the left editor and click 'Encode'. Special characters like spaces, ampersands, and non-ASCII letters are converted to their percent-encoded form (e.g. a space becomes %20). The result appears on the right.

To decode a percent-encoded URL or query string, paste it into the left editor and click 'Decode'. The tool reverses the encoding and shows the human-readable original text.

Use the 'Swap' button to move the output back to the input field — handy when you want to encode or decode multiple times in a chain. Your data never leaves your browser; encoding and decoding uses the browser's built-in JavaScript functions.

Frequently asked questions

How do I URL encode a string online for free?

Paste your text or URL into the editor on this page and click 'Encode'. The tool converts special characters to their percent-encoded form instantly — no account or install needed.

What is the difference between URL encoding and decoding?

Encoding converts special characters (spaces, &, =, ?, non-ASCII) into a percent-encoded format safe for use in URLs (e.g. 'hello world' becomes 'hello%20world'). Decoding reverses the process, turning percent codes back into readable characters.

Can I decode a URL without installing anything?

Yes — this tool runs entirely in your browser using built-in JavaScript. There is no software to download, and it works on any device.

Why does my URL have %20 or %3D in it?

%20 is a percent-encoded space and %3D is an equals sign (=). These appear when a URL or query parameter contains characters that aren't safe to use literally. Paste the URL into the decoder to convert them back to readable text.

What characters get encoded?

encodeURIComponent (which this tool uses) encodes everything except letters, digits, and the characters - _ . ! ~ * ' ( ). Spaces become %20, & becomes %26, = becomes %3D, and so on.