URL decoder

Decode URL input to back to a normal string.

Tool: URL Encoder/Decoder
Type: Text Decoder

URL decoder

Decode Your URL
Paste URL-encoded content to decode
Key Features
  • Instant decoding
  • Handles special characters
  • Preserves formatting
  • One-click copy
  • No registration required

How to Use

1
Paste URL

Enter encoded URL

2
Click Decode

Instant decoding

3
Review Result

Decoded content

4
Copy Result

Use decoded URL

Understanding URL Decoding

What is URL Decoding?

URL decoding is the process of converting URL-encoded text back to its original readable format. URLs use percent-encoding to safely transmit special characters.

How It Works

URL decoding converts %XX sequences back to their original characters. For example, %20 becomes a space, %2B becomes +, and %2F becomes /.

Common Uses

Debugging APIs, analyzing web requests, reading encoded query parameters, and understanding encoded URLs.

Pro Tip

Use this tool to quickly decode URLs without manual character mapping. Perfect for web development and debugging.

Perfect For

Web Development

Debug and understand encoded URLs in web applications.

API Testing

Analyze and decode API request parameters.

Security Analysis

Examine encoded malicious URLs for security research.

Data Migration

Decode URLs for data processing and migration.

Why Choose Our Tool?

⚡
Instant Decoding

Real-time results

✓
Accurate

100% accurate decoding

🔤
All Characters

Handles special chars

📋
Easy Copy

One-click copying

📱
Mobile Friendly

Works everywhere

🆓
100% Free

No registration

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Complete Guide to URL Decoding

What is URL Encoding and Why Do We Need URL Decoding?

URLs can only contain certain characters from the ASCII standard. When developers need to include special characters like spaces, ampersands, or accented letters in URLs, they must be encoded using percent-encoding (also called URL encoding). This encoding converts forbidden characters into a format safe for URLs. URL decoding reverses this process, converting encoded URLs back to their original, readable format. Understanding both processes is essential for web development, API integration, and debugging.

How URL Encoding Works

  • Space becomes %20: The most common encoding example
  • Special characters encoded: + becomes %2B, / becomes %2F, ? becomes %3F
  • Non-ASCII characters: UTF-8 bytes are converted to percent-encoded sequences
  • Unreserved characters: Letters, digits, hyphens, underscores, periods, and tildes are not encoded
  • Reserved characters: Have special meaning in URLs and are encoded in certain contexts

Practical Applications of URL Decoding

Web developers decode query parameters to understand user input. API developers examine encoded request bodies to debug integration issues. Security researchers analyze malicious URLs by decoding them. Log analysts decode encoded entries for investigation. Data migration projects require decoding URLs from various sources. SEO specialists examine encoded URLs in search results. Web scrapers need to decode URLs from web pages.

Common URL Encoding Examples

Email addresses in URLs become encoded (@ becomes %40). Query parameters with multiple words get space-encoded (as %20 or +). File paths with special characters are encoded for safe transmission. Authentication tokens often appear URL-encoded in requests. Form data submitted via GET requests is URL-encoded. Search queries containing special characters are encoded. International domain names (IDNs) use punycode encoding and URL encoding.

Best Practices for Working with URLs

Always decode URLs before analyzing them manually. Use proper URL encoding functions in your programming language rather than manual encoding. Test URL encoding/decoding with your complete character set. Be aware that different systems may use different encoding standards. Validate decoded URLs for security vulnerabilities. Use tools like this URL decoder for quick verification. Combine URL decoding with other analysis for complete understanding.

Pro Tip: Use this tool to quickly decode URLs during development and debugging. Always verify decoded URLs make sense before using them. For automation, implement proper URL decoding in your code using language-native functions.

Frequently Asked Questions

URL encoding converts special characters to safe URL format (e.g., space → %20). URL decoding reverses this process, converting encoded text back to readable format. Decoding is what this tool does—it takes %XX sequences and converts them back to original characters.
Yes. This tool decodes any URL-encoded text. Whether it's query parameters, form data, headers, or any other URL-encoded content, paste it and it will be decoded instantly.
URLs have strict character restrictions. Special characters like spaces, ?, &, and # have special meanings in URLs. Encoding converts these to safe %XX sequences. This ensures URLs transmit correctly across all systems without errors or misinterpretation.
International characters (é, ü, ñ, etc.) are typically UTF-8 encoded, creating multiple %XX sequences per character. This tool correctly decodes them back to the original characters, preserving accents and special symbols.
Decoding itself is secure—it's a simple conversion process. However, decoded URLs might reveal sensitive information previously hidden by encoding. Always treat decoded content carefully and validate URLs before using them.
In some contexts (like form data), + represents a space. This tool handles standard URL percent-encoding where %20 represents spaces. For application/x-www-form-urlencoded data, + is converted to spaces.
Yes! Our URL Decoder is completely free with unlimited decoding and no registration required. Use it as many times as you need.
Yes. This tool handles URLs of any practical length. Modern browsers support extremely long URLs, so even complex, multi-parameter URLs can be decoded without issues.

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