URLs can only be sent over the internet using the ASCII character set. If your URL contains spaces, special characters, or international symbols, it must be URL encoded before it is transmitted.
How Percent-Encoding Works
URL encoding, also known as percent-encoding, replaces unsafe ASCII characters with a % followed by two hexadecimal digits. For example, a space becomes %20, and an ampersand (&) becomes %26.
The Pitfalls of Improper Encoding
If you pass raw user input (like a search query containing an ampersand) into a query string without encoding it, the API will incorrectly interpret the ampersand as the start of a new parameter, breaking your request.
Developer Workflows
While JavaScript provides built-in functions like var(--surface-sunken)] text-[var(--ink-primary)] text-[0.85em] font-mono border border-[var(--border-subtle)]">encodeURIComponent(), developers often need to quickly encode or decode strings during testing and debugging. Our client-side [URL Encode/Decode tool allows you to safely process these strings instantly without sending your sensitive API parameters to an external server.