URLs can only carry a safe subset of characters, so spaces, slashes, and ampersands inside values get rewritten as percent codes. Send “hello world” through a query string unencoded and the space breaks the URL.
Percent-encode a string for safe URL transport or decode it back to readable text. Do it at the edges, encode the value before you append it to a link, and the links stop behaving like they swallowed a wildcard.
Try it now: open the free tool, runs 100{ddff9936f8333f09603555df7bd6492034f3a4a35de784276d3cf3d66166a113} in your browser.
Bottom line: encode the values you append, decode what you receive.
Your turn: use the tool free here, no signup, nothing leaves your device.
How do you use URL Encoder / Decoder?
Open the URL Encoder / Decoder in your browser (Escape or unescape special characters for URLs). Type or paste your input, adjust the options, and copy the result. Everything runs locally on your device with no account and nothing stored, so the three steps below take seconds even for confidential work.
- Paste or type the value you want converted into the input box.
- Pick the units or format you are converting between.
- Read the converted result and copy it with the copy button.
Try URL Encoder / Decoder free. It opens right in your browser.