What is URL encoding?
URL encoding replaces characters that are not safe in a web address with percent codes. Spaces become %20, special symbols get their own codes, and Unicode text is converted into a safe form.
Without it, links with spaces or special characters break. With it, the same address works everywhere. This tool encodes and decodes instantly in both directions.
How to use this tool
- Paste a URL or some text.
- Click Encode URL to escape special characters.
- Click Decode URL to restore readable text.
- Swap the result back into the input when you need to work on it again.
Common use cases
- Preparing query parameters that contain spaces or symbols.
- Passing data between pages in links.
- Reading logs where URLs are stored percent-encoded.
Keep it simple
Remember that URL encoding is about safety in transport, not secrecy. It makes addresses valid and readable, but it does not hide anything. Use it for that job and keep sensitive data out of URLs entirely.
Frequently Asked Questions
URLs only allow certain characters. Spaces, quotes, non-English letters and symbols like & must be escaped as % codes so the address stays valid and unbroken.
Each special character becomes a % sign followed by two hex digits. A space becomes %20 and a question mark inside a value becomes %3F.
When you see %20 and %3A everywhere and want to read the actual text. Decoding restores spaces and symbols so the address makes sense again.
No. URL encoding just makes characters safe for transport. It adds no security, so never use it to hide sensitive data.
Yes. Unicode text is encoded properly, which is how URLs handle Hindi, emoji and other characters that are not allowed in plain form.
No. Encoding and decoding run entirely in your browser. Nothing is sent to a server.