Base64 Encoder / Decoder
Encode text or files to Base64, or decode a Base64 string back to plain text.
A reliable Base64 encoder for text
Base64 is one of the most common encodings on the web. The Base64 Encoder and Decoder translates between plain text and Base64 with full UTF-8 support, so emojis, accented characters, and non-Latin scripts all round-trip correctly.
When Base64 appears in real systems
- Data URLs —
data:image/png;base64,iVBOR...inlines an image directly inside HTML or CSS. - JWT tokens — each of the three segments is a Base64URL-encoded JSON object.
- Basic authentication — HTTP’s
Authorization: Basic <base64>is justuser:passwordencoded. - Email attachments — MIME uses Base64 to carry binary files in text email bodies.
- Small binaries in config — keys, certificates and icons sometimes appear as Base64 blobs in YAML / JSON configs.
What this tool does
- Encode converts any UTF-8 text into the standard Base64 alphabet, including
=padding. - Decode accepts standard Base64 (with or without padding) and returns UTF-8 text.
Privacy
The entire conversion happens in your browser. If you paste a token, password or key here, it does not leave your device.
Frequently asked questions
- What is Base64 used for?
- Base64 encodes binary data using only 64 printable ASCII characters (A-Z, a-z, 0-9, + and /). It is widely used to embed binary payloads inside text-only contexts — data URLs, JSON, email (MIME), JWTs, and HTTP Basic Auth.
- Does Base64 encryption secure my data?
- No. Base64 is encoding, not encryption. Anyone can decode a Base64 string back to the original — there is no key. Do not use it to protect secrets.
- Why does my decoded string have strange characters?
- Most commonly, the input was not valid Base64 (perhaps truncated or missing padding), or the original bytes were not UTF-8 text. The decoder attempts UTF-8 decoding, which is the dominant text encoding on the web.