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DevUtil

HTML Entity Encoder & Decoder - Encode HTML Entities Online

Plain Text
HTML Entities

About the HTML Entity Encoder and Decoder

HTML reserves certain characters for its own syntax. The angle brackets < and > define tags. The ampersand & starts an entity reference. The double quote " delimits attribute values. If these characters appear in your content without encoding, the browser will misinterpret them as markup. This tool converts those characters, along with any non-ASCII code points, into safe HTML entity sequences, and can reverse the process just as easily.

Everything runs client-side in your browser. Paste your raw text to encode it, or paste an entity-laden string to decode it back to readable characters. The result updates instantly.

How to Use the HTML Entity Tool

Switch between the "Encode" and "Decode" tabs. In Encode mode, paste or type plain text on the left and the entity-encoded output appears on the right. In Decode mode, paste HTML source that contains entities on the left and the decoded, human-readable text appears on the right. Use the copy button to grab the output.

Features

  • Encode and decode. Switch between encoding and decoding with a single tab click.
  • Full Unicode handling. Non-ASCII characters, including emoji and CJK scripts, are converted to hexadecimal numeric entities.
  • Instant results. Output updates in real time as you type or paste text.
  • Named entity decoding. Recognises common named entities like &amp;, &lt;, &copy;, and more, along with decimal and hex numeric entities.
  • Privacy first. All processing happens in the browser. No data is sent to any server.

Common Use Cases

Front-end developers encode HTML entities when embedding user-generated content to prevent XSS vulnerabilities. Template authors use entities to safely display code snippets inside <pre> or <code> blocks. Email developers encode special characters for maximum compatibility across email clients. And anyone debugging HTML source benefits from a quick decoder to figure out what an entity sequence actually represents.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are HTML entities?
HTML entities are special sequences that represent characters which have a reserved meaning in HTML or cannot be typed directly. For example, '<' represents the less-than sign (<) and '&' represents the ampersand (&). They begin with an ampersand and end with a semicolon.
When should I encode HTML entities?
You should encode HTML entities whenever you insert user-supplied or dynamic text into HTML markup. This prevents the browser from interpreting the text as HTML tags or attributes. Failing to encode properly is one of the most common causes of Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities.
Does this tool help prevent XSS attacks?
Encoding user input into HTML entities is a key defence against reflected and stored XSS attacks. By converting characters like <, >, and " into their entity equivalents, the browser renders them as visible text instead of interpreting them as HTML or JavaScript. However, proper output encoding should always be handled by your templating engine or framework. This tool is for inspection, debugging, and learning.
What is the difference between named and numeric HTML entities?
Named entities use a human-readable label, like '&' for & or '©' for the copyright symbol. Numeric entities use the Unicode code point in decimal (©) or hexadecimal (©) form. Numeric entities can represent any Unicode character, while named entities only cover a defined set.
Does encoding affect how text looks in a browser?
No. When a browser renders HTML, it converts entities back to their original characters. The text '<div>' displays as '
' on the page. Encoding only changes the source code representation, not the visual output.