How to use the URL encoder
- Choose Encode or Decode.
- Paste your text or URL — the result appears instantly.
- If you decode a URL with a query string, its parameters are broken out into a table.
What is URL encoding?
URLs can only safely contain a limited set of characters. Percent-encoding (URL encoding) replaces unsafe characters with a % followed by their hex code — a space becomes %20, an ampersand becomes %26. Use component encoding when you're putting a value inside a query parameter (it escapes &, =, ? and # so they don't break the URL structure), and full-URL encoding when you want to keep those structural characters intact.
Benefits
- Encodes and decodes percent-encoded (URL-encoded) text both ways.
- Component mode escapes & = ? # for safe use inside query parameters.
- Automatically breaks a query string into a key/value table.
- Runs entirely in your browser.
Limitations to know
- Decoding fails on malformed input, such as a stray % that isn’t a valid escape.
- It uses %20 for spaces rather than the legacy + form encoding.
- It does not validate whether the overall URL actually resolves.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Using full-URL encoding for a parameter value, which leaves & and = unescaped and breaks the URL.
- Double-encoding text that was already encoded.
- Expecting + to be treated as a space in every context.
Alternatives
For Base64 use the Base64 Encoder; to build a clean URL slug use Text to Slug.
Last updated: August 2026 · Reviewed by the AI Toolbox editorial team.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between the two encode modes?
Component mode escapes URL-structural characters (& = ? #) — right for parameter values. Unchecked, it preserves them — right for encoding a whole URL.
Why is a space sometimes %20 and sometimes +?
%20 is standard percent-encoding; + is a legacy form-encoding convention. This tool uses %20.
Is my data uploaded?
No — encoding and decoding run entirely in your browser.
Why did decoding fail?
The text probably contains a stray % that isn't part of a valid escape sequence.