What characters need to be URL encoded?

Characters that must be encoded include spaces, !, #, $, &, ', (, ), *, +, ,, /, :, ;, =, ?, @, [, and ]. Any character not in the unreserved set (A-Z, a-z, 0-9, -, _, ., ~) should be percent-encoded in query strings.

What does %20 mean in a URL?

%20 is the URL encoding for a space character (ASCII 32). When you see %20 in a URL, it represents a space that has been encoded so the URL remains valid. Some systems use + instead of %20 for spaces in query strings.

What is the difference between encodeURI and encodeURIComponent?

encodeURI encodes a full URL and preserves characters like /, ?, &, and = that have special meaning in URLs. encodeURIComponent encodes a URL component (like a query parameter value) and also encodes those special characters, making it safe for embedding values in query strings.

ToolsURL Encoder / Decoder

URL Encoder / Decoder

Encode and decode URLs, query parameters, and URIs instantly. Supports full encodeURI and encodeURIComponent logic.

Plain Text / URLEmpty

Encoded URL StringWaiting

How to use URL Encoder / Decoder?

1
Type or paste a plain text URL or query string into the left editor.
2
The percent-encoded (URL safe) equivalent will automatically appear in the right editor.
3
Paste an encoded URL in the right editor to instantly decode it to plain text.
4
Use the actions panel to Copy the output or Download it as a text file.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is URL encoding?

URL encoding (percent-encoding) is a mechanism for encoding information in a Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) under certain circumstances. It replaces non-ASCII characters and special characters (like ?, &, =, +, space) with a percent sign (%) followed by two hexadecimal digits.

Why do we need to encode query parameters?

Web protocols use special characters to structure URLs (e.g., ? separates the path from query params, & separates key-value pairs). If a parameter value itself contains these characters (like a search keyword containing 'and & or'), it must be encoded to prevent parser confusion.

When should I use encodeURIComponent?

You should use encodeURIComponent when you want to encode a specific query parameter value. It encodes characters like '?', '&', and '=', which are otherwise treated as URL syntax.

When should I use encodeURI?

Use encodeURI when you want to encode a full, complete URL. It leaves syntax characters intact but encodes unsafe characters like spaces.

Understanding URL Encoding and Decoding

URL Encoding (also known as Percent-Encoding) is a mechanism for encoding information in a Uniform Resource Identifier (URI). URLs can only be sent over the internet using the ASCII character-set. Because URLs often contain characters outside the ASCII set, or characters that have special meaning (like spaces, ampersands &, or equals signs =), the URL has to be converted into a valid ASCII format.

URL encoding replaces these unsafe ASCII characters with a "%" followed by two hexadecimal digits. For example, a space becomes %20, and an ampersand becomes %26.

When Do You Need a URL Encoder?

Passing Query Parameters: If you are building a web application and need to pass a user's email or a complex search query in the URL, you must URL-encode it to prevent breaking the request.
Debugging API Requests: Backend developers frequently need to decode garbled URL parameters (like q=hello%20world%21) back into readable text ("hello world!") to understand what data is being transmitted.
Complete Privacy: Like all GoodParse tools, this encoder/decoder operates entirely locally in your browser. We never track or store the URLs or parameters you are analyzing.

Stop guessing which characters need escaping. Use our real-time URL Encoder and Decoder to instantly translate complex query strings into perfectly safe URLs.