URL Decoder
Turn %20 and %C3%A9 back into readable text. Paste a full URL and you also get its parts and every query parameter laid out in a table.
- Runs in your browser
- No sign-up
- Free to use
URL breakdown
| Parameter | Value |
|---|
How to use URL Decoder
- Paste an encoded string or a complete URL.
- The decoded text appears immediately. Tick Treat + as space for form-encoded data.
- If you pasted a URL, scroll to the breakdown to see the host, path and each query parameter.
- Copy the decoded result, or copy individual parameter values from the table.
URL Decoder features
Instant decoding
Output updates as you type or paste.
URL breakdown
Shows protocol, host, port, path and fragment for any valid URL.
Query parameter table
Lists each parameter name and its decoded value, including repeated names.
Form encoding support
Optionally treats plus signs as spaces.
Handles double encoding
A Decode again button unwraps values that were encoded more than once.
Clear error for bad sequences
Malformed input such as a lone % is reported instead of failing silently.
When to use URL Decoder
- Reading a long tracking or redirect URL to see where it really leads.
- Debugging query parameters sent by a form or an API client.
- Inspecting UTM tags and other campaign parameters.
- Recovering readable text from server logs.
URL Decoder FAQ
What does %20 mean?
It is the percent-encoded form of a space. The two digits after the percent sign are the character's byte value in hexadecimal; 20 is the code for a space.
Why do I still see % codes after decoding?
The value was probably encoded twice, for example a URL passed as a parameter inside another URL. Select Decode again to unwrap the next layer.
What causes a “malformed” error?
A percent sign that is not followed by two hexadecimal digits, or byte sequences that do not form valid UTF-8. This often means the string was cut off or was encoded with a legacy character set.
When should + be treated as a space?
In query strings produced by HTML forms and in form-encoded request bodies. In a path, or in values encoded with encodeURIComponent, a plus sign is a literal plus.
Does the tool visit the URL?
No. The URL is only parsed as text in your browser. No request is made to it.
Anatomy of a URL
A URL is made of ordered parts: the scheme (https), the host (example.com), an optional port, the path, the query string after a question mark, and the fragment after a hash. The query string is a list of name=value pairs joined by ampersands, and it is where most encoded data lives.
Decoding the query correctly means splitting on the ampersands and equals signs first and decoding each name and value afterwards. Decoding the whole string first can turn an encoded ampersand inside a value into a separator and corrupt the result. The parameter table here follows the correct order, so values containing & or = are shown intact.