HTML Entity Encoder Decoder - Encode & Decode Special Chars Free

How to Use the HTML Entity Encoder/Decoder

1. Choose mode — select Encode (text to entities) or Decode (entities to text)
2. Type or paste text — the output field updates in real-time
3. Copy the result — click the copy button to grab the converted text
4. Swap to reverse — use the swap button to exchange input and output for quick round-trip conversion

Features

• Encode mode — converts & < > " ' and special characters to HTML entities
• Decode mode — converts entities like & and © back to characters
• 30+ character mappings — common symbols, currency, arrows, quotes, math operators
• Decimal entity support — handles { format for any character
• Hex entity support — handles < format
• Swap button — exchange input and output instantly
• Real-time — no button to click, results appear as you type

Use Cases

• Blogging: When writing code tutorials, encode <code> tags so they display as text instead of being interpreted by the browser
• CMS publishing: Many CMS platforms strip raw HTML — encode entities to preserve special characters
• Email templates: HTML emails require entities for special characters to render consistently across clients
• XML/feed generation: RSS feeds and sitemaps need special characters encoded to remain valid XML
• Internationalization: Properly encode currency symbols (€, £, ¥) and accented characters (é, ñ, ü)

FAQ

What is an HTML entity?

An HTML entity is a string that begins with an ampersand (&) and ends with a semicolon (;), used to represent characters that have special meaning in HTML or characters that aren’t easily typed. For example, < represents the less-than sign <.

When should I encode vs decode?

Encode when you’re preparing text to be displayed in HTML — especially code snippets or user-generated content. Decode when you’re extracting text from HTML source and need the readable version.

Do I need to encode every special character?

No. Only characters with special meaning in HTML must be encoded: <, >, &, ", and '. For readability, you can leave other characters as-is.

Are named entities better than numeric ones?

Named entities (like ©) are easier to read in source code, while numeric entities (like ©) work universally across all character encodings. Both render identically in the browser.

Tips

• Use Encode mode before pasting code into WordPress or any WYSIWYG editor
• When decoding, the tool handles named, decimal, and hex entities all at once
• Bookmark this tool — you’ll reach for it more often than you expect when working with CMS platforms