Convert
Base64, Base32 & Base58 Encoder/Decoder
Encode and decode Base64, Base32 and Base58 in one tool — text or file, with format-specific options for each.
Runs entirely in your browser — nothing you paste is uploaded or stored.
What is base converter?
Base64, Base32 and Base58 all solve the same problem — representing arbitrary binary data as printable text — with different tradeoffs between compactness and safety. Base64 packs the most into the fewest characters using a 64-symbol alphabet, but that alphabet includes "+", "/" and "=", which behave badly inside URLs. Base32 trades some of that density for a case-insensitive, punctuation-free alphabet, which is why TOTP/2FA authenticator apps use it for secret keys. Base58 goes further still, dropping the digit "0" and the letters "O", "I" and lowercase "l" — characters that are easy to misread — which is why Bitcoin addresses and IPFS content identifiers use it. None of the three is encryption: anyone can decode any of them, and they provide no confidentiality whatsoever. This tool converts in both directions for all three formats, in one place, and handles the case most naive implementations get wrong — non-ASCII text such as accented characters, emoji and CJK scripts.
When to use it
- Decoding the payload of an API response, webhook or configuration value that arrived Base64-encoded and needs to be read.
- Reading or constructing a TOTP/2FA secret key, which authenticator apps display and accept as unpadded Base32 text.
- Decoding a Bitcoin address or IPFS content identifier (CIDv0 strings start with "Qm") to inspect the raw bytes it encodes.
- Encoding credentials for HTTP Basic authentication, which requires a Base64 representation of "username:password".
- Building a data URL to embed a small image or font directly in CSS or HTML without a separate network request.
How to use this tool
- Pick a format — Base64, Base32 or Base58 — then choose Encode to convert plain text (or, for Base64, a file) into that format, or Decode to convert it back.
- Paste your input on the left. The conversion runs as you type; there is no submit button.
- Use the format-specific option when it applies — "URL-safe" for Base64, "Omit padding" for Base32 — to match the convention the receiving system expects.
- Press "Use result as input" to feed the output back in and round-trip it, a quick way to confirm a value decodes to what you expect.
Example
Encoding the same short text in Base64.
Input
Hello, World!Output
SGVsbG8sIFdvcmxkIQ==Switching the format selector to Base32 or Base58 re-encodes this exact input using that alphabet instead, without losing what you typed.
Base64, Base32, Base58 — and binary data
This tool works with text. If you decode a string that represents a PNG, a ZIP archive or a raw cryptographic key, the bytes are perfectly valid but they are not readable text, and the tool will tell you so rather than displaying mojibake. Decoding binary payloads to a file is outside what a text tool can usefully do — for images specifically, see the dedicated Image ↔ Base64 Converter.
Base64 encoding is also available for whole files here, not just pasted text — switch to
Base64, choose Encode, then File source, to turn a small image or font into a data: URL you
can inline directly in CSS or HTML.
Frequently asked questions
Is Base64, Base32 or Base58 a form of encryption?
No, and treating any of them as one is a genuine security mistake. All three are reversible encodings with no key involved — anyone who sees the encoded string can decode it in seconds. They exist to make binary data safe to transport through text-only channels, not to hide anything. If you need confidentiality, you need actual encryption.
Which format should I use?
It depends entirely on what the receiving system expects, not on which is "better" — Base64 is the default for APIs, JSON fields and data URLs; Base32 is what TOTP/2FA apps and case-insensitive systems expect; Base58 is what Bitcoin, IPFS and similar identifiers use. You cannot choose freely — decode whichever format your input was actually encoded in, or your output will just be garbage bytes interpreted as the wrong alphabet.
How is Base32 different from Base64, and Base58 different from both?
Base64 uses 64 characters including "+", "/" and "=" padding — most compact, but unsafe to put directly in a URL. Base32 uses 32 characters (A-Z, 2-7), which is case-insensitive and free of that punctuation, at the cost of roughly 60% size overhead versus Base64's 33%. Base58 uses 58 characters with no padding and no visually ambiguous symbols (no 0/O or 1/I/l), trading a little more size for output that's safe to read aloud or copy by hand.
Why do some Base64 or Base32 strings end with equals signs?
That is padding. Both encodings work in fixed-size groups — three bytes at a time for Base64, five for Base32 — and pad the final, undersized group with "=" characters so the decoder knows how many bytes to discard. Base58 never pads this way, since it treats the whole input as one large number rather than grouping bytes. URL-safe Base64 and TOTP-style Base32 usually drop the padding, and this tool's decoders tolerate it being missing either way.
Why did my decode produce an error about UTF-8?
The input decoded successfully in the selected format, but the resulting bytes are not valid UTF-8 text — which usually means the original data was binary, such as an image, a compressed file, or a raw cryptographic key, rather than text. This tool displays text, so it reports the problem rather than showing you replacement characters and pretending it worked.
Is it safe to paste a private key, seed phrase or password into this tool?
This tool runs entirely in your browser and never transmits what you paste anywhere, but that is not a reason to paste a real secret into any browser-based tool, including this one. Treat secrets the way you would a physical key — copying them into text fields, clipboards or browser tabs is a bad habit to get into regardless of what any individual tool promises to do with the data.
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