Convert text to Base64 and back instantly with our free online tool. Perfect for encoding data for URLs, APIs, and secure transmission.
Support for both standard and URL-safe Base64 encoding with advanced options for developers.
Process data locally in your browser for complete privacy and security. No registration required.
Encode and decode Base64 text instantly with our comprehensive online tool.
Perfect for developers, data encoding, and secure text transmission with URL-safe options and advanced features.
Convert text to and from Base64 encoding with these simple steps:
Choose whether to encode text to Base64 or decode Base64 to text using the tabs
Enter your text in the input area - either plain text for encoding or Base64 string for decoding
Click the respective encode or decode button to perform the conversion
Copy your result using the copy button or download it as a text file for later use
Base64 is commonly used for encoding binary data in text format, such as email attachments, data URLs, HTML embedded data, and transmitting data over text-based protocols.
No, Base64 is not encryption but encoding. It's easily reversible and should not be used for security purposes. For secure data, use proper encryption algorithms like AES.
URL-safe Base64 replaces '+' with '-' and '/' with '_' to make the encoded string safe for use in URLs and filenames without requiring additional escaping.
Yes, Base64 encoding increases data size by approximately 33% compared to the original binary data due to the encoding overhead.
This tool is designed for text-based encoding. For large files, consider using dedicated file processing tools that handle Base64 encoding more efficiently.
Select whether you want to encode text to Base64 or decode Base64 back to readable text using the toggle buttons at the top of the tool.
Enter your content by typing directly, pasting from clipboard, or uploading a text file using the upload button.
Choose advanced options in Developer Mode if needed, such as URL-safe encoding or adding line breaks for email compatibility.
Click the encode or decode button to instantly process your data and view the results in the output area.
Copy your result to clipboard or download it as a text file for later use in your applications.
Encode 'Hello World!' to Base64: 'SGVsbG8gV29ybGQh'
URL-safe version replaces '+' with '-' and '/' with '_' for web use
Encode JSON objects for transmission in APIs and web services
Standard Base64 with line breaks for email compatibility
Encode credentials and tokens for secure API authentication headers
Transmit binary data through text-based protocols like email and HTTP
Embed images and files directly in HTML/CSS using Base64 encoding
Safely include data in URLs using URL-safe Base64 encoding
Store binary data in text-based database fields
Base64 is a binary-to-text encoding scheme that converts binary data into ASCII characters. It's commonly used for transmitting data over media designed to handle text, such as email attachments, HTML forms, and URLs.
The encoding process converts every 3 bytes of binary data into 4 characters from the Base64 alphabet (A-Z, a-z, 0-9, +, and /). This results in approximately 33% data size increase but ensures compatibility with text-only systems.
Base64 is not encryption - it's a reversible encoding process. Anyone with the encoded data can easily decode it back to its original form. It's designed for compatibility, not security.
Trying to encode non-text files as if they were text
Binary files should be read as bytes before encoding, not as text strings
Forgetting URL-safe encoding for web applications
Use URL-safe Base64 (replace + and / with - and _) for URLs and query parameters
Assuming Base64 provides security or encryption
Base64 is encoding, not encryption. Use proper encryption for sensitive data
Not handling padding characters correctly
Base64 strings should end with '=' padding characters. Most tools handle this automatically
Using Base64 for large binary files
Base64 increases file size by 33%. Consider other methods for very large files
Base64 is commonly used for encoding binary data in text-based formats like email attachments, embedding images in HTML/CSS, storing complex data in JSON/XML, transmitting data through URLs, and API authentication tokens.
Base64 is encoding, not encryption. It's a reversible process designed to make binary data compatible with text-based systems. It provides no security - anyone can decode Base64 data back to its original form.
URL-safe Base64 replaces '+' with '-' and '/' with '_' characters to avoid issues in URLs. It also typically removes padding '=' characters. This makes it safe for use in query parameters, filenames, and URL paths.
Base64 encoding increases data size by approximately 33%. This is because every 3 bytes of binary data become 4 characters of ASCII text. This overhead is the trade-off for ensuring compatibility with text-only systems.
Yes, our tool supports UTF-8 encoding, which means it can handle any Unicode characters including emojis, accented letters, and non-Latin scripts. The characters are first converted to UTF-8 bytes, then encoded to Base64.
There's no artificial limit on our tool. The only constraints are your browser's memory and processing capabilities. Most modern browsers can handle several megabytes of text without issues.
This usually happens when the original data wasn't text (like an image or binary file) or when the encoding used a different character set. Base64 works best with text data encoded in UTF-8 format.
Yes, absolutely! Our Base64 encoder/decoder is completely free with no restrictions on personal or commercial use. No registration, API keys, or premium features required.