Encoding Tool

HTML Entity Encoder/Decoder

Encode special characters to HTML entities or decode HTML entities back to text instantly.

Text to Encode Max 15,000 chars

0/15000 charactersPremium: 50000 chars

0 / 15,000 characters

Encoded Output

Encoded output will appear here...

Introduction

HTML reserves characters like angle brackets, ampersands, and quotes for markup syntax, which means displaying these characters as visible text requires encoding them as entities like < and &. Failing to encode user input before rendering it in HTML is the root cause of cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities. An HTML entity encoder ensures that any text can be safely embedded in an HTML document by converting reserved and special characters to their entity equivalents, and it reverses the process when you need to decode entity-laden content back into readable text.

What Is HTML Entity Encoder?

An HTML entity encoder is a bidirectional converter that transforms between raw text and HTML entity representations. In encode mode, it scans text for characters that have special meaning in HTML — the five mandatory entities & (&), < (<), > (>), " ("), and ' (') — and replaces them with their named or numeric entity equivalents. In decode mode, it performs the reverse transformation, converting < back to <, © back to ©, and — back to —.

Beyond the five mandatory entities, the tool can encode all non-ASCII Unicode characters as numeric entities. For example, the euro sign € can be encoded as € (decimal) or € (hexadecimal). This is essential when generating HTML for environments that do not declare UTF-8 encoding, or when inserting text into XML documents that must remain ASCII-safe. The encoder also recognizes all 252 named HTML entities defined in the HTML specification, from   and © to obscure entities like &angrtvb; (right angle).

For email template developers, the tool provides a "safe email" encoding mode that converts characters into numeric entities to bypass spam filters that strip named entities. For template engine users, it offers a double-encode option that converts & into &amp; — necessary when generating HTML that will itself be re-rendered by a template engine that interprets entities on the first pass.

HTML Entity Encoder Examples

Input	Output
Encode: "5 < 10 & 10 > 5"	5 < 10 & 10 > 5
Decode: "© 2024 Acme — All rights reserved"	© 2024 Acme — All rights reserved
Encode Unicode: "Price: €99, discount 50%"	Price: €99, discount 50%

Key Features of HTML Entity Encoder

Bidirectional encoding and decoding for the five mandatory HTML entities and all 252 named entities
Numeric entity output in decimal (©) and hexadecimal (©) formats for non-ASCII characters
Full Unicode encoding mode that converts all non-ASCII characters to numeric entities for ASCII-safe output
Double-encode option for generating HTML that passes through template engines without premature decoding
Safe email encoding mode using numeric entities to bypass spam filter entity stripping
Batch mode for encoding or decoding entire HTML files without processing each entity individually
Live preview showing the decoded result rendered as actual HTML alongside the entity-encoded source

How It Works

Enter Your HTML or Encoded Text

Paste the HTML content containing special characters you want to encode, or paste HTML entity references you want to decode back to their original characters. The tool handles named entities like & and < as well as numeric entities like < and <.

Encode or Decode HTML Entities

Encoding converts characters like angle brackets, ampersands, and quotes into their safe HTML entity equivalents so they display correctly in browsers without being interpreted as HTML markup. Decoding reverses the process, converting entity references back to their original characters for editing or analysis.

Copy the Safe Output for Embedding

The encoded output is safe to embed in HTML documents, email templates, or CMS content fields without risk of the special characters breaking the markup. The decoded output is ready for text editing, search operations, or any context where you need the original characters.

Who Uses This

Frontend Developers

encoding user-generated content before rendering it in HTML to prevent XSS attacks by ensuring that script tags and special characters are converted to harmless entity references

Email Template Builders

encoding special characters in HTML email templates that use strict parsers, where unencoded ampersands and angle brackets can cause rendering failures across email clients

Technical Bloggers

encoding code snippets for display in blog posts so that HTML tags in the examples are shown as text rather than being interpreted and rendered by the browser as actual page elements

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between named and numeric HTML entities?

Named entities use readable names like & for ampersands and < for less-than signs, while numeric entities use decimal or hexadecimal code points like & or &. Named entities are easier to read in source code, but numeric entities work for any Unicode character, including those without assigned names.

When should I encode versus decode HTML entities?

Encode when you want to display special characters as text on a web page without the browser interpreting them as HTML. Decode when you have entity references that you need to convert back to their original characters for processing, searching, or editing outside of an HTML context.

Does the tool encode all special characters or only the dangerous ones?

The encoder targets characters that have special meaning in HTML: angle brackets, ampersands, quotation marks, and apostrophes. These are the characters that can break markup or create security vulnerabilities. Other Unicode characters are left as-is unless you specifically need to encode all non-ASCII characters for compatibility.