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Glossary Data & Encoding

Base64

Base64 is an encoding that writes any binary data using only 64 safe text characters (A-Z, a-z, 0-9, + and /), so it can pass through systems built for text.

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In more detail

Every 3 bytes become 4 characters, so the output is about a third larger, padded with = when needed. It appears in email attachments, data: URLs and JWTs. It is encoding, not encryption: anyone can decode it. See How Base64 and Encoding Work.

Example

Man encodes to TWFu.

Try these tools

Base64 Encode

Quickly encode your plain text or binary data into Base64 format with our free online tool.

Base64 Decode

Quickly decode your Base64 strings back to plain text with our free online tool.

See also

  • Glossary Binary
    Binary is the base-2 number system, using only the digits 0 and 1, which computers use because electronic circuits are either off or on.
  • Glossary JWT
    A JWT (JSON Web Token) is a compact, signed token made of three Base64URL parts that carries claims such as who a user is and when the.
  • Glossary ASCII
    ASCII is a 7-bit character encoding that assigns numbers 0 to 127 to English letters, digits, punctuation and control codes.
  • Guide How Base64 and Encoding Work
    What encoding is (and is not), how Base64 turns three bytes into four characters, why it adds a third, and the mistakes to avoid.
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