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Base64 Encoder/Decoder

Encode or decode text and images into base64 format.

About Base64 Encoding

Base64 is a binary-to-text encoding scheme that represents binary data in an ASCII string format. It's commonly used when there's a need to encode binary data that needs to be stored and transferred over media that are designed to deal with text.

Common Uses

  • Embedding images in HTML/CSS/JSON
  • Sending binary data in email attachments
  • Storing complex data in XML
  • Data URIs in web browsers
  • Encoding user credentials in basic authentication

Characteristics

  • Base64 encoded data is ~33% larger than the original
  • Uses A-Z, a-z, 0-9, +, / and = for padding
  • URL-safe variant replaces + and / with - and _
  • No encryption - it's an encoding, not encryption
  • Commonly used with data URIs: data:[mimetype];base64,[data]

Base64 encoding is not a form of encryption and does not provide any security. It's simply a way to represent binary data in ASCII format. Never use Base64 to protect sensitive information.