UTF-8 Encoder & Decoder

Encode text as UTF-8 bytes or decode and validate hex bytes. Inspect code points, multi-byte characters, BOMs, and invisible controls.

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UTF-8 Encoder & Decoder workspaceProcesses input in your browser

THE BYTE STUDIO / UTF-8

See what your text is made of.

Inspect UTF-8 bytes, find encoding problems, and understand why one character can need several bytes.

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Character encoding

1Your text

Try an example

2UTF-8 result

Ready when you are

Spaces, line breaks, and Unicode are preserved. Text input supports up to 128 KiB of bytes.

Formatting & export options Make the result fit your workflow

Byte separatorWrap byte rowsAdd 0x to each byteUppercase hex letters

Formatting changes encoded output. Decoding accepts the input formats listed above. Compact output uses full-width bytes without prefixes.

Shortcuts in this tool: Ctrl/⌘+Enter to copy · Ctrl/⌘+S to download

0Unicode code points

0UTF-8 bytes

0Bits of data

1–4Bytes per code point

UNDERSTAND THE RESULT

Every character, explained.

Code points identify characters. The columns show the bytes used to store them.

Example: 😀

Characters with their Unicode code point, byte offset, and binary, hex, decimal, and octal bytes
Character	Code point	Byte offset	Hex	Binary	Decimal	Octal
😀	U+1F600	0	F0 9F 98 80	11110000 10011111 10011000 10000000	240 159 152 128	360 237 230 200

Offsets start at 0. The table shows up to 120 code points; byte-report downloads include every byte. Combining marks and joined emoji can contain several code points.

A small detail that makes a big difference

A, é, €, and 😀 use 1, 2, 3, and 4 UTF-8 bytes respectively. Unicode code points (U+…) are different from encoded bytes.

Try it yourselfF0 9F 98 80↓ 😀

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What is the UTF-8 Encoder & Decoder?

UTF-8 encodes a Unicode code point using one to four bytes. A is 41 in hexadecimal, é is C3 A9, € is E2 82 AC, and 😀 is F0 9F 98 80. This tool makes those bytes visible and decodes valid hex sequences back into text. The inspector separates a character's Unicode identity, shown as U+ notation, from its actual byte encoding. It also shows byte offsets, which is helpful when comparing a file or log with the text you expected. A visually single symbol may contain several code points, such as a letter plus a combining accent or an emoji joined with other emoji; the table explains code points rather than claiming that every visible symbol is one character.

How to Use the UTF-8 Encoder & Decoder

Choose text or UTF-8 bytes

Use Text to UTF-8 to see hexadecimal byte values. Use UTF-8 to text to decode a sequence copied from a log, file, or test.

Enter or import your data

Paste text, choose the Unicode example, or open a UTF-8 text file. Decoding accepts compact or separated hex, 0x prefixes, and complete \x byte escapes.

Validate and inspect

A valid sequence produces text and a character table. Malformed UTF-8 produces an error without substituted output. Compare code points and byte offsets, then download the result or a byte report.

Why Choose Our UTF-8 Encoder & Decoder?

✓

Strict UTF-8 validation

Catch truncated sequences, invalid continuation bytes, and other malformed input instead of silently inserting replacement symbols.

U+

Understand character boundaries

View Unicode code points separately from their one-to-four-byte representations and inspect byte offsets.

↵

Preserve exact text

Keep leading BOM characters, spaces, tabs, and line endings. The converter does not trim or normalize your text.

Common Use Cases for UTF-8 Encoder & Decoder

Debug a truncated UTF-8 sequence copied from an application log.

Compare byte counts and code points for accents, Hindi, Chinese, and emoji.

Inspect a leading byte order mark or hidden line-ending characters.

Create reproducible Unicode fixtures and export their exact raw bytes.

Frequently Asked Questions — UTF-8 Encoder & Decoder

What is the difference between UTF-8 bytes and a Unicode code point?

A code point identifies a Unicode character; an encoding specifies how to store it. For example, 😀 has code point U+1F600 and UTF-8 bytes F0 9F 98 80. The code point number is not a single byte value.

Why does the decoder reject an incomplete sequence?

UTF-8 requires a specific number and range of continuation bytes. E2 82 is incomplete, while E2 82 AC represents €. The decoder stops on malformed input so missing or changed data is not disguised as a successful conversion.

Does decoding remove the UTF-8 BOM?

No. A leading EF BB BF sequence is preserved as U+FEFF and labeled BOM in the inspector. This helps you inspect the original data and makes an encode/decode round trip preserve the bytes.

Will this repair mojibake or detect Windows-1252 automatically?

No. This is a strict UTF-8 byte converter. It does not guess a legacy encoding or undo text that was previously decoded incorrectly. Obtain the original bytes and identify the source encoding before attempting a repair.

Can I convert percent-encoded URLs here?

This page accepts hexadecimal byte notation such as C3 A9, not percent-encoded URLs or Unicode escape notation. Use the URL Encode / Decode tool for %C3%A9. Use this inspector when you need to examine the underlying UTF-8 bytes.

Where is conversion performed and what are the limits?

Conversion runs in your browser without uploading text. Input supports up to 128 KiB of text bytes or 2 MiB of encoded notation, with a maximum of 128 KiB of decoded bytes. The table previews 120 code points; the CSV export includes all bytes.

📖 Related Guides

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