HTML Entity Encoder / Decoder

Encode special characters as HTML entities or decode HTML entities back to characters. Prevent XSS and display special symbols safely.

Input

0 characters0 words

HTML Entities Output

Output will appear here...

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The HTML Entity Encoder/Decoder converts special characters to their HTML entity equivalents and vice versa. Characters like <, >, &, and quotation marks are replaced with named or numeric HTML entities, making them safe to display in web pages without being interpreted as HTML markup.

This tool is essential for web developers who need to display code snippets in HTML, sanitize user input to prevent XSS attacks, or work with special Unicode characters in web content. It supports named entities (like &, <, ©) and numeric entities (like ©) for the full Unicode range.

All encoding and decoding happens in your browser — no text is transmitted to a server, making it safe for handling sensitive content or proprietary code.

How to Use HTML Entity Encoder / Decoder

1Enter text containing special characters in the input area.
2Toggle between Encode and Decode mode.
3The converted text appears instantly in the output.
4Copy the result and use it in your HTML code.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are HTML entities?▾

HTML entities are special codes that represent characters in HTML. They start with & and end with ;. For example, < represents <, & represents &, and © represents the copyright symbol. They prevent browsers from interpreting characters as HTML tags.

Why should I encode HTML entities?▾

Encoding prevents cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks by ensuring user input is displayed as text rather than executed as HTML or JavaScript. It also ensures special characters like <, >, and & display correctly on web pages.

What is the difference between named and numeric HTML entities?▾

Named entities use descriptive names like &amp; for &. Numeric entities use the Unicode code point like &#38; for the same character. Named entities are more readable but only cover common characters; numeric entities can represent any Unicode character.

Can I use HTML entities for emojis and special symbols?▾

Yes. Any Unicode character can be represented as a numeric HTML entity using its code point. For example, the heart symbol can be written as ❤ and emojis can be expressed as 😀 using hexadecimal notation. This is useful when your HTML file's character encoding might not support the character directly.