Does Base64 encoding encrypt my data?

No. Base64 is an encoding scheme, not encryption. Anyone who receives a Base64 string can decode it instantly without a key. Do not use Base64 to hide sensitive data.

What is the difference between standard and URL-safe Base64?

Standard Base64 uses + and / as its 62nd and 63rd characters. These have special meaning in URLs, so URL-safe Base64 replaces them with - and _ respectively. The output is otherwise identical and interchangeable if you handle the substitution correctly.

What is the difference between encodeURI and encodeURIComponent?

encodeURI is designed for complete URLs — it leaves the structural characters (: / ? # & = + @) untouched so the URL remains valid. encodeURIComponent is designed for individual values within a URL — it encodes those structural characters too, preventing them from being misinterpreted as URL delimiters. Use encodeURIComponent for query parameter values; use encodeURI only if you have a full URL that you want to sanitise without breaking its structure.

Why does a space sometimes appear as + instead of %20?

HTML forms using application/x-www-form-urlencoded encoding replace spaces with + rather than %20. Both are valid in query strings, but they are different encodings. Modern APIs and URLs use %20 (RFC 3986). If you are constructing a query string for a form submission, check whether the receiving server expects + or %20.

Tool comparison

Base64 Encoder / Decoder vs URL Encoder / Decoder

Base64 Encoder / Decoder and URL Encoder / Decoder are both encoding tools. They serve related purposes but are optimised for different tasks — understanding the distinction helps you choose the right one for your workflow.

Bottom line

URL Encoder handles percent-encoding of characters that are illegal in a URL. Base64 encodes any binary data but adds ~33% size overhead and is not natively URL-safe. Prefer URL Encoder for query strings; prefer Base64 URL-safe mode for embedding binary payloads inside URLs.

What each tool does

Base64 Encoder / Decoder

Base64 is an encoding scheme that converts binary data — or any text — into a string of 64 ASCII characters (A–Z, a–z, 0–9, +, /). It is used wherever binary data must travel through a medium that only handles text: embedding images in HTML or CSS, encoding credentials in HTTP Authorization headers, storing binary payloads in JSON, and passing data through URLs. Base64 does not encrypt data; it only changes the representation. The URL-safe variant replaces + with - and / with _ so the result is safe to embed in URLs and filenames without percent-encoding.

Open Base64 Encoder / Decoder →

URL Encoder / Decoder

Percent-encoding (also called URL encoding) is a mechanism defined in RFC 3986 for representing characters that are not allowed or have special meaning in a URL. Every character that needs encoding is replaced by a percent sign followed by two hex digits representing the character's UTF-8 byte value — for example, a space becomes %20 and an ampersand becomes %26. There are two encoding variants: component encoding (encodeURIComponent) converts every character except the unreserved set A–Z a–z 0–9 and - _ . ! ~ * ' ( ); full URL encoding (encodeURI) additionally preserves the structural characters : / ? # [ ] @ ! $ & ' ( ) * + , ; = so that a complete URL remains navigable. Decoding reverses the process, converting all %XX sequences back to the original characters. URL encoding is required whenever you embed user-supplied text in a query string, form a redirect URL, construct a OAuth callback, or pass data through a system that only allows safe ASCII characters.

Open URL Encoder / Decoder →

Side-by-side comparison

Feature	Base64 Encoder / Decoder	URL Encoder / Decoder
Category	encoding	encoding
Primary purpose	Encode text or data to Base64, or decode Base64 back to plain text.	Encode or decode URLs and query string components using percent-encoding (RFC 3986).
Inputs	input, mode, charset	input, mode
Outputs	output, valid, encoding, byte_length, error	output, mode, changed, encoding_table

When to use each

Use Base64 Encoder / Decoder when…

How to encode a string to Base64

Convert plain text to a Base64 string for use in APIs, HTTP headers, or data URIs.

How to decode a Base64 string

Convert a Base64-encoded string back to its original plain text.

Use URL Encoder / Decoder when…

How to encode a URL query parameter value

Safely embed user input or special characters in a URL query string.

How to decode a percent-encoded URL

Convert %XX sequences back to human-readable text for debugging or display.

Frequently asked questions

Does Base64 encoding encrypt my data?: No. Base64 is an encoding scheme, not encryption. Anyone who receives a Base64 string can decode it instantly without a key. Do not use Base64 to hide sensitive data.
What is the difference between standard and URL-safe Base64?: Standard Base64 uses + and / as its 62nd and 63rd characters. These have special meaning in URLs, so URL-safe Base64 replaces them with - and _ respectively. The output is otherwise identical and interchangeable if you handle the substitution correctly.
What is the difference between encodeURI and encodeURIComponent?: encodeURI is designed for complete URLs — it leaves the structural characters (: / ? # & = + @) untouched so the URL remains valid. encodeURIComponent is designed for individual values within a URL — it encodes those structural characters too, preventing them from being misinterpreted as URL delimiters. Use encodeURIComponent for query parameter values; use encodeURI only if you have a full URL that you want to sanitise without breaking its structure.
Why does a space sometimes appear as + instead of %20?: HTML forms using application/x-www-form-urlencoded encoding replace spaces with + rather than %20. Both are valid in query strings, but they are different encodings. Modern APIs and URLs use %20 (RFC 3986). If you are constructing a query string for a form submission, check whether the receiving server expects + or %20.