HTML Entity Encoder / Decoder
Guide: How to Type Emoji and Special Characters on Any Device
Nothing you enter or choose here leaves your device. This tool runs in your browser.
How to use
- 1Choose Encode or Decode.
- 2For encoding, pick how far to go: special characters only, or also non-ASCII characters as names, numbers or hex.
- 3Paste your text.
- 4Click Copy result.
Frequently asked questions
Which characters must be escaped in HTML?
At minimum & and <, plus > and quotes inside attribute values. Escaping them stops text from being read as markup, which also helps prevent cross-site scripting.
What is the difference between named, decimal and hex entities?
They are three ways to write the same character: é, é and é all mean é. Named entities are easiest to read, and numeric ones work for any character.
Why is my entity not decoded?
Only complete entities ending with a semicolon are decoded, and the name must exist in HTML. Unknown names are left as they are.
Is my text uploaded?
No. Encoding and decoding happen in your browser.
Read the guides
Learn how this works and how to get the most from it.
Writing & text
How to Type Emoji and Special Characters on Any Device
Keyboard shortcuts for emoji and symbols on Windows, Mac and phones, how Unicode and HTML entities work, and why some characters break.
1 min read
Web & SEO
HTML Entities, Formatting and Minifying Explained
When to escape characters in HTML, how formatting and minifying differ, and how much minifying HTML, CSS and JavaScript really saves.
1 min read
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