Encode text or files to Base64, or decode Base64 back to readable text or a file you can download.
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What is Base64?
Base64 turns any data into plain text using 64 characters (A–Z, a–z, 0–9, + and /). It’s used to put images in CSS or HTML (data URIs), send attachments in email, and store binary data in JSON or XML. It isn’t encryption: anyone can decode it.
| Text | Base64 |
|---|---|
| Hello | SGVsbG8= |
| £35 | wqMzNQ== |
| https://example.com | aHR0cHM6Ly9leGFtcGxlLmNvbQ== |
Modes
- Encode text: handles accents, symbols and emoji correctly (UTF-8).
- Decode text: turns Base64 back into readable text.
- Encode a file: creates a data URI you can paste into HTML or CSS.
- Decode to a file: rebuilds an image, PDF or other file from Base64.
- URL-safe: uses – and _ instead of + and /, as in JWTs and URLs.
Base64 makes data about a third bigger, so only inline small images.
Frequently asked questions
Is Base64 secure?
No. It’s encoding, not encryption, and anyone can decode it.
Why is my Base64 text not decoding?
It may be a file (like an image) rather than text. Use “Decode Base64 to a file”.
What is a data URI?
Base64 data with a type prefix, like data:image/png;base64,…, which browsers can display directly.
Are my files uploaded?
No, everything happens in your browser.
Sources
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