Base64 Encoder and Decoder
Encode and decode UTF-8 text as standard or URL-safe Base64.
Character Encoding Detector
Analyze raw byte values and compare likely character encodings. Review UTF-8 validity, decoded previews, byte order marks and suspicious text patterns before choosing an encoding.
Encoding detection is probabilistic. The same byte sequence may decode successfully under several encodings, so review the previews and context before choosing a result.
Enter byte-like text only. The detector does not execute input, read files, fetch URLs or normalize decoded text before analysis.
Paste hexadecimal bytes, decimal byte values, binary byte groups or Base64 data.
Automatic detection accepts common byte notations but reports malformed input instead of guessing silently.
Encoding detection results
Run the detector to compare candidate encodings.
| Candidate encoding | Validity | Confidence | Warnings | Decoded preview |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No results yet. | ||||
Detect text encoding online
This character encoding detector accepts byte-like input and compares the decoded results across supported text encodings. It can identify byte order mark evidence, validate UTF-8, rank candidate encodings, show decoded previews, and flag suspicious mojibake patterns such as café. It is an encoding checker for byte samples, not a file encoding detector or a document parser.
The detector runs on the UnicodeNow server because the comparison and validation logic is implemented server-side. Input is treated as bytes and text only; it is not executed, used as a URL, or interpreted as code.
Character encoding detection example
For the byte sample 63 61 66 C3 A9, the UTF-8 preview is usually the strongest result because those bytes decode cleanly to natural text.
| Encoding | Validity | Preview | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| UTF-8 | Valid | café | Valid UTF-8 and natural decoded text. |
| Windows-1252 | Valid | café | Decodes, but contains a common mojibake pattern. |
| ISO-8859-1 | Valid | café | Possible single-byte interpretation, but less plausible for this sample. |
How encoding detection works
The detector parses the submitted bytes, checks for known byte order marks, validates UTF-8 structure, and attempts supported decoders. Results are ranked using evidence such as BOM matches, strict decoder success, printable text ratio, replacement characters, suspicious control characters, and common mojibake indicators. The labels are relative confidence labels, not calibrated probabilities.
Supported byte input formats
Hexadecimal input accepts spaced pairs, continuous hex, and 0x-prefixed byte values:
63 61 66 C3 A9
636166C3A9
0x63 0x61 0x66 0xC3 0xA9Decimal, binary, and Base64 input are also supported when selected:
99 97 102 195 169
01100011 01100001 01100110 11000011 10101001
Y2Fmw6k=UTF-8 validity and byte order marks
UTF-8 validation checks continuation bytes, truncated multi-byte sequences, overlong encodings, encoded surrogate code points, values above U+10FFFF, unexpected continuation bytes and invalid leading bytes. BOM detection recognizes UTF-8, UTF-16 LE, UTF-16 BE, UTF-32 LE and UTF-32 BE signatures. A BOM is strong evidence, but the remaining bytes still need to decode cleanly.
Why encoding detection is not always certain
Byte sequences do not always identify their original encoding. Pure ASCII is valid under UTF-8 and many single-byte encodings. Single-byte encodings often decode every possible byte. Short samples provide little evidence, and language context can matter. Use the decoded previews and source metadata before deciding.
Encoding confidence and suspicious text
Results use labels such as Strong match, Likely, Possible, Unlikely and Invalid. The diagnostics show replacement characters, suspicious control characters, decode errors and mojibake indicators instead of an unexplained suspicious score.
Mojibake and incorrect decoding
When café is encoded as UTF-8 and those bytes are incorrectly decoded as Windows-1252, it can appear as café. Markers such as Ã, Â, ’, “ and †often point to UTF-8 bytes read through a legacy single-byte encoding. Read What Is Mojibake? and How to Fix Broken UTF-8 Text for repair workflows.
How to use the encoding detector
- Paste byte values into the input field.
- Select the input format or leave automatic detection enabled.
- Run the encoding analysis.
- Compare candidate validity, warnings and decoded previews.
- Use the source context to choose the most plausible encoding.
Privacy and server processing
This detector sends the submitted byte data to UnicodeNow for analysis. Input is processed securely in memory by the server-side detector and is not intentionally stored after the request completes.
Do not submit passwords, private keys, access tokens, personal records or other sensitive data.
Frequently asked questions
How can I detect a text encoding?
Start with the original bytes, select their input format, and compare strict UTF-8 validation, byte order marks, decoded previews and warnings across candidate encodings.
Can character encoding be detected with certainty?
Not always. Many byte sequences are valid under more than one encoding, so detection is probabilistic and should be checked against source metadata and context.
How does the tool identify valid UTF-8?
The detector validates UTF-8 byte structure, including continuation bytes, truncated sequences, overlong forms, surrogate encodings and values above U+10FFFF.
What is a byte order mark?
A byte order mark is a short byte signature at the start of text that can indicate encodings such as UTF-8, UTF-16 or UTF-32 and their byte order.
Why does UTF-8 text appear as café?
That mojibake usually happens when the UTF-8 bytes for café are decoded as Windows-1252 or a similar single-byte encoding.
What is the difference between Windows-1252 and ISO-8859-1?
Windows-1252 defines printable characters in the 0x80-0x9F byte range, while ISO-8859-1 defines control characters there, so those bytes can help distinguish previews.
Does this tool support file uploads?
No. Paste byte-like text such as hexadecimal bytes, decimal bytes, binary byte groups or Base64 instead of uploading a file.
Is my input stored on the server?
The submitted byte data is processed on the UnicodeNow server for the current request. The application does not intentionally store detector input after the request completes, but you should not submit secrets or sensitive records.
Related tools
To inspect hexadecimal bytes directly, use the Hex to Text converter. For binary byte groups, use Binary to Text. To measure decoded output, use the Byte Length Calculator.
Binary to Text
Decode binary byte groups into UTF-8 text.
Byte Length Calculator
Count UTF-8 bytes, code points, grapheme clusters and UTF-16 code units for text.
Decimal to Text
Convert decimal bytes or Unicode code point values to text.
Hex to Text
Decode hexadecimal byte values into UTF-8 text.
Text to Binary
Convert UTF-8 text bytes into binary byte groups.
UTF-8 Validator
Validate hexadecimal byte sequences as UTF-8.
Mojibake Repair
Try common repairs for text decoded with the wrong encoding.
Related guides
Unicode vs UTF-8
Unicode defines characters and code points. UTF-8 encodes those code points as bytes for files, databases, web pages, APIs and network messages.
What Is Mojibake?
Learn why text becomes garbled, how UTF-8 bytes turn into mojibake such as café and It’s, and how to repair it safely.
How to Fix Broken UTF-8 Text
A safe workflow for diagnosing broken UTF-8, validating bytes, reversing mojibake, handling double encoding and auditing repairs.