Use this tool to escape or unescape HTML. For more informtions see below.
What is HTML escaping?
HTML escaping is a method used to replace characters and symbols that have special meaning in HTML with escape sequences, also known as entities. This ensures that reserved characters, such as <, >, and &, are displayed correctly without interfering with the HTML structure.
Why Use HTML Escape Sequences?
- Prevent syntax errors caused by special characters being interpreted as HTML code.
- Cross-browser and platforms compatibility. Some browsers may not properly support special characters, so using entities ensures that the character is displayed correctly.
- Improve readability and accessibility of source code.
-
Display HTML code inside an HTML document without the browser
interpreting it as actual markup. For example, when using the
<pre>tag, escaping ensures that the content is displayed as text rather than processed by the browser. - Avoids encoding issues: If the HTML document is viewed in an environment that does not support character encoding, HTML entities can prevent the display of strange characters or unreadable symbols.
Manually escaping and unescaping characters can be tedious. Use our HTML Escape & Unescape Tool to quickly convert text for safe HTML display.
Essential characters that always need to be escaped
There is no fixed number of characters that necessarily require escaping
in HTML. It largely depends on the context in which they are used and
how much you want to protect your site from potential
vulnerabilities.
These are the characters that must always be "escaped" in HTML, as they
have special meanings in the language and could cause issues if used
directly in the text:
- < (less than): Used to open HTML tags.
- > (greater than): Used to close HTML tags.
- & (ampersand): Used to introduce HTML entities (e.g., for a non-breaking space).
- " (double quote): Used to delimit HTML attributes.
- ' (single quote): Used (less frequently) to delimit certain HTML attributes.
Other characters that often need to be escaped
In addition to these, there are other characters that often require escaping, depending on the context:
- © (copyright symbol)
- ® (registered trademark symbol)
- € (euro symbol)
- ™ (trademark symbol)
- è (è - accented letter)
- é (é - accented letter)
- à (à - accented letter)
- “ (left double quote)
- ” (right double quote)
- ‘ (left single quote)
- ’ (right single quote)
- – (en dash)
- — (em dash)
- × (multiplication symbol)
- ÷ (division symbol)
- ≤ (less than or equal to symbol)
- ≥ (greater than or equal to symbol)
- π (mathematical constant pi symbol)
- £ (pound symbol)
- ¥ (yen symbol)
These are some of the accented letters (both lowercase and uppercase) and their corresponding HTML entities:
- è (è - e with grave accent)
- é (é - e with acute accent)
- à (à - a with grave accent)
- ì (ì - i with grave accent)
- ò (ò - o with grave accent)
- ù (ù - u with grave accent)
- È (È - E with grave accent)
- É (É - E with acute accent)
- À (À - A with grave accent)
- Ì (Ì - I with grave accent)
- Ò (Ò - O with grave accent)
- Ù (Ù - U with grave accent)
When escaping is not necessary
In some contexts, such as within <pre> or <code> tags, where the text is displayed exactly as written, escaping may not be necessary. However, it's always recommended to escape for added security and consistency.
Security first
The general rule is: if in doubt, "escape". It's always better to escape one extra character than risk introducing vulnerabilities into your website.
Resources for Further Reading
To learn more about escaping and unescaping characters in HTML and JavaScript, check out the following official resources:
Example:
How to use escape sequences in HTML Code
to display special characters correctly.
Use <strong> tags for bold text.Use <strong> tags for bold text.
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