HTML Entity Decoder
What is HTML Entity Decoder
HTML entity decoding turns encoded entities back into the characters they represent. Named entities like &, < and © become &, < and ©, decimal entities like © become their character, and hexadecimal entities like © are read as base-16 code points. It is the exact inverse of HTML encoding, so a string that was escaped for safe display becomes normal readable text again.
How to use
- Paste the text containing HTML entities into the input field.
- Read the decoded, human-readable output that appears instantly below.
- Click Copy to place the decoded text on your clipboard.
- Use the HTML Entity Encoder link below to reverse the operation.
When to use it
Copied a snippet from an API response or a scraped page and it is full of & and '? Paste <p>Tom & Jerry © 2024</p> and you get back <p>Tom & Jerry © 2024</p>, clean and ready to read or reuse. It handles named, decimal and hex entities in the same pass.
Frequently asked questions
What is HTML entity decoding?
It converts HTML entities back into the plain characters they stand for. For example & becomes &, < becomes <, and © becomes ©. This is the reverse of HTML encoding and gives you readable text instead of escaped markup.
Does it support named, decimal and hexadecimal entities?
Yes. Named entities like & and ©, decimal numeric entities like ©, and hexadecimal entities like © are all decoded in a single pass. Numeric entities work for any valid Unicode code point, including emoji.
What happens to unknown or malformed entities?
Anything that is not a recognised entity is left exactly as it is. An unknown name like &nonsense; or an out-of-range numeric entity stays untouched, so nothing in your text is silently lost.
Can I share this tool with my inputs pre-filled?
Yes. The URL updates automatically as you type. Copy it from the address bar or use the Share button, and anyone who opens the link will see your exact text ready to go.
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