XML Encoding / Decoding
Encode or decode special characters for use in XML documents
About this tool
XML reserves five characters — &, <, >, " and ' — for markup. If a value you insert into an element or attribute contains one of them unescaped, the parser either fails or silently misreads your document. Entity encoding replaces them with &, <, >, " and ' so the content stays data.
This tool escapes text for insertion into XML and decodes text that already contains entities, resolving & last so a value like &lt; is not accidentally turned into markup.
When to use it
- Building an XML element or attribute value that contains & or angle brackets
- Decoding a SOAP, RSS or SVG response to see the text as readers see it
- Checking whether a value was escaped twice before it was stored
- Preparing content for an XML-based config, feed or integration
Worked example
Input
<tag>Hello & Goodbye</tag>Output
<tag>Hello & Goodbye</tag>The angle brackets become < and > and the ampersand becomes &, so the whole string is inert text inside another document.
Frequently asked questions
Which characters have to be escaped in XML?
& and < must always be escaped in content. > is escaped for safety, and " and ' must be escaped inside attribute values, where the tool applies them so a single output works in both element and attribute context.
Does the decoder handle HTML entities such as ?
No. It resolves the five predefined XML entities only, which keeps the round trip predictable. HTML named entities are a different, much larger set.
Does this tool send my text anywhere?
No. Encoding and decoding run entirely in your browser.