</> DevToolHub

URL Decoder

Decode percent-encoded URL strings back to readable text. Convert %20, %26, %3D and other encoded sequences to their original characters.

Your data never leaves your browser

How to Use

  1. 1

    Paste the encoded string

    Enter a URL-encoded string containing percent sequences like %20, %26, %3F, etc.

  2. 2

    Click Decode

    The tool converts all percent-encoded sequences back to their original characters.

  3. 3

    Copy the result

    Click Copy to get the decoded, human-readable text.

What is URL Decoder?

URL decoding (percent-decoding) reverses percent-encoding: it turns sequences like %20 back into a space, %26 back into an ampersand, and %D0%94 back into the Cyrillic Π”. Every time you copy a URL from a browser address bar, a server log, or an API response, the unreadable percent sequences make it hard to see what is actually being passed β€” this tool makes the data human-readable again.

Common situations where you need a URL decoder: inspecting query parameters in analytics reports, reading redirect chains in HTTP headers, debugging OAuth callback URLs, decoding webhook payloads from Stripe or GitHub, and cleaning up tracking links full of utm_ parameters.

The decoder handles the full percent-encoding specification (RFC 3986), including multi-byte UTF-8 sequences for non-Latin scripts and emoji. It also recognizes %0A (newline) and %0D (carriage return) control characters that sometimes hide in URL parameters.

Paste a single encoded value or a complete URL β€” the tool decodes every percent sequence it finds while leaving the rest of the text untouched. All processing runs locally in your browser.

FAQ

What if my string contains + signs instead of %20?
In application/x-www-form-urlencoded format (used by HTML forms), + represents a space. This tool decodes standard percent-encoding where spaces are %20. Replace + with spaces manually if you're decoding form data.
Why am I getting an error?
The input likely contains an invalid percent-encoded sequence β€” for example, a lone % not followed by two hexadecimal digits, or an incomplete multi-byte sequence. Make sure your encoded string is well-formed.
Can I decode a full URL with this tool?
Yes, you can paste a complete URL and the tool will decode all percent-encoded sequences in it. The URL structure (protocol, host, path separators) will remain intact since those characters aren't percent-encoded.
How do I decode Cyrillic, Chinese, or emoji characters from a URL?
Non-Latin characters appear as long percent-encoded sequences in URLs (e.g. %D0%9F%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%B2%D0%B5%D1%82 for 'ΠŸΡ€ΠΈΠ²Π΅Ρ‚'). Paste the entire encoded URL into this tool β€” it reconstructs multi-byte UTF-8 sequences and displays the original characters correctly.
Is URL decoding the same as HTML entity decoding?
No. URL decoding converts percent sequences (%20, %3D) used in URLs. HTML entity decoding converts named or numeric entities (&amp;, &#60;) used in HTML documents. They are different encoding schemes for different contexts. Use our HTML Entity Decoder for HTML entities.

Related Articles

URL Encoding & Percent-Encoding: Complete Guide with Examples

URL Encoding Cheat Sheet

URL Slug Best Practices: SEO-Friendly URLs in 2026

Related Tools

URL Encoder

Encode special characters for safe use in URLs. Convert spaces, ampersands, and other characters to percent-encoded format.

HTML Entity Decoder

Decode HTML entities back to their original characters. Convert &amp;lt;, &amp;amp;, &amp;quot; and numeric entities to readable text.

Base64 Decoder

Decode Base64 strings back to plain text online. Handles standard Base64 and UTF-8 encoded content. Free, fast, client-side.

Hex Decoder (Hex to Text)

Convert hexadecimal byte values back to readable text. Accepts space-separated, comma-separated, or continuous hex strings.

HTML Entity Encoder

Encode special characters to HTML entities. Prevents XSS attacks and ensures HTML code displays correctly on web pages.

JWT Decoder

Decode and inspect JSON Web Tokens (JWT) online. View header, payload, claims, and expiration status without any server.