Displaying code snippets on a web page, embedding HTML inside a CMS field, or debugging markup you received as entities — sooner or later everyone needs to convert special characters to and from HTML entities. Our free HTML Encoder/Decoder does exactly that with no signup: paste your input, and it turns &, <, >, quotes and apostrophes into their safe entity forms, or decodes entities back into plain readable characters.
The encoder protects your markup so it displays as literal text instead of being parsed by the browser — essential when publishing code examples. The decoder reverses the process, including entities that were encoded more than once, which frequently happens when content passes through several layers of escaping. Both directions run instantly in your browser with one click.
Web developers, bloggers, technical writers and anyone who posts code online will use this regularly. It handles the five core entities plus named and numeric entities on decode, flags invalid input cleanly, and never sends your content to a server.
HTML Encoder/Decoder
Convert special characters to HTML entities, or decode entities back to plain characters.
How to use
- Choose the mode: Encode to turn characters into entities, or Decode to turn entities back into characters.
- Paste or type your input into the text box.
- Click “Convert” — the result appears below instantly.
- Use the Copy button to grab the result for your clipboard.
- Use Clear to empty the input and start over.
FAQs
When should I encode HTML?
Whenever you want markup to appear as visible text on a page rather than being rendered — for example, showing a <div> example in a tutorial. Without encoding, the browser would treat it as a real element and it would disappear from view.
What does “double-encoded” input mean on decode?
Content that passed through two escaping layers looks like & instead of &. The decoder handles nested encoding by decoding repeatedly until no valid entities remain, so double- or triple-encoded text resolves to the original characters.
Which entities are covered?
Encoding covers the five essential characters (&, <, >, ", '). Decoding additionally recognizes named entities like and numeric ones like A via the browser’s own HTML parser.