HTML Entity Encoder & Decoder

About this tool

Convert characters like <, >, & and quotes into HTML entities so they display literally, or decode entities back to characters.

Example

Input: <a href="x">

Output: <a href="x">

Privacy

This tool runs entirely in your browser. Your data is processed locally and never uploaded to a server.

How to use this tool

1. Paste the text or HTML entities into the input box.
2. Choose whether you want to encode text or decode entities.
3. Run the tool to convert the content.
4. Copy the result and use it in your HTML, template, or editor.

Step by step, what happens

1. The tool reads the text you entered and checks it for characters that need HTML escaping or entity decoding.
2. If you choose encode, it replaces special characters such as <, >, and & with their HTML entity forms.
3. If you choose decode, it turns entity text such as &amp; or &lt; back into the original characters.
4. The converted output is shown so you can review it before copying it.

Worked example

For example, if you want to safely show a less-than sign in HTML, you can convert a short sentence with special characters.

Input: 5 < 7 & 9

1. Enter the text exactly as you want it processed.
2. Select HTML entity encoding so the special characters are escaped for HTML use.
3. The tool replaces the less-than sign and ampersand with their entity forms.
4. Copy the encoded result into your page or code.

Tips and common mistakes

• Use encode when you want to display raw text inside HTML without it being interpreted as markup.
• Use decode when you pasted entity text from a source and need the original readable characters back.
• Be careful not to encode text twice, because you can end up with visible entity text like &amp;lt;.
• If your input already contains HTML tags that you want to keep as text, encoding will make them safe to display.

Frequently asked questions