HTML Entity API

Encode plain text as HTML entities or decode named and numeric HTML character references through an API.

Try the HTML Entity API

POST /api/v1/html-entity/

Send request transmits this input to the API server. The online tool processes input in your browser.

Request parameters

ParameterTypeRequiredRules
textstringYesPlain text or HTML character references. Maximum: 16384 code points.
operationstringNoEncode UTF-8 text or decode an encoded UTF-8 string. Values: encode, decode. Default: "encode".

Response fields

A successful response is {"ok":true,"data":{…}}. These fields are inside data.

result · string
The converted text. Empty input can produce an empty result.

Escaping text for an HTML context

Use entity encoding when inserting a plain string into an HTML text context. The encoder escapes reserved markup characters and uses hexadecimal references where needed. The output is returned as a JSON string, so JSON escaping and HTML entity escaping remain separate layers. Decode only when the downstream application actually expects literal characters.

Decoding is not sanitization

The decoder follows HTML character-reference rules, including named and numeric references. Unknown references may remain unchanged under those rules. Decoding does not strip tags, remove scripts or make untrusted HTML safe to render. Return the decoded value as text or pass it through a sanitizer designed for the target HTML context.

cURL, JavaScript and Python examples

Encode markup characters

Encoding returns escaped text; it does not create an HTML document.

cURL
curl --fail-with-body --request POST 'https://www.base64.sh/api/v1/html-entity/' \
  --user-agent 'Base64.sh API example/1.0' --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data-raw '{"text":"<p title=\"café\">A & B</p>"}'
JavaScript
const response = await fetch("https://www.base64.sh/api/v1/html-entity/", {
  method: "POST",
  headers: { "Content-Type": "application/json" },
  body: JSON.stringify({
  "text": "<p title=\"café\">A & B</p>"
})
});
if (!response.ok) throw new Error(await response.text());
console.log(await response.json());
Python
import json
from urllib.request import Request, urlopen

payload = json.loads("{\n  \"text\": \"<p title=\\\"café\\\">A & B</p>\"\n}")
request = Request(
    "https://www.base64.sh/api/v1/html-entity/",
    data=json.dumps(payload, ensure_ascii=False).encode("utf-8"),
    headers={"Content-Type": "application/json", "User-Agent": "Base64.sh API example/1.0"},
    method="POST",
)
with urlopen(request, timeout=15) as response:
    print(json.load(response))

Response · HTTP 200

{
  "ok": true,
  "data": {
    "result": "&#x3C;p title=&#x22;caf&#xE9;&#x22;&#x3E;A &#x26; B&#x3C;/p&#x3E;"
  }
}

Decode references

Named, decimal and hexadecimal references are supported.

cURL
curl --fail-with-body --request POST 'https://www.base64.sh/api/v1/html-entity/' \
  --user-agent 'Base64.sh API example/1.0' --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data-raw '{"text":"&copy; &amp; &#x1F600;","operation":"decode"}'
JavaScript
const response = await fetch("https://www.base64.sh/api/v1/html-entity/", {
  method: "POST",
  headers: { "Content-Type": "application/json" },
  body: JSON.stringify({
  "text": "&copy; &amp; &#x1F600;",
  "operation": "decode"
})
});
if (!response.ok) throw new Error(await response.text());
console.log(await response.json());
Python
import json
from urllib.request import Request, urlopen

payload = json.loads("{\n  \"text\": \"&copy; &amp; &#x1F600;\",\n  \"operation\": \"decode\"\n}")
request = Request(
    "https://www.base64.sh/api/v1/html-entity/",
    data=json.dumps(payload, ensure_ascii=False).encode("utf-8"),
    headers={"Content-Type": "application/json", "User-Agent": "Base64.sh API example/1.0"},
    method="POST",
)
with urlopen(request, timeout=15) as response:
    print(json.load(response))

Response · HTTP 200

{
  "ok": true,
  "data": {
    "result": "© & 😀"
  }
}

Invalid request example

{
  "text": 123
}

HTTP 400

{
  "ok": false,
  "error": {
    "code": "INVALID_INPUT",
    "message": "text must be a string."
  }
}

Limits and error handling

Requests require Content-Type: application/json and a UTF-8 JSON object. The body limit is 32 KiB (32,768 bytes), text fields allow up to 16,384 Unicode code points unless a smaller limit is listed, and responses are limited to 256 KiB. Unknown parameters and unpaired Unicode surrogates in parameter strings are rejected. Send inputs in the request body, not query parameters.

Anonymous access is limited to approximately 60 POST requests per minute per IP address, shared across endpoints in each Cloudflare location. Shared networks share the allowance. Counters are eventually consistent, not a guaranteed global quota. On HTTP 429, wait for the Retry-After interval before retrying; avoid immediate retry loops.

Programmatic clients should send an identifying User-Agent, as shown in the cURL and Python examples. Browser fetch supplies its own header. Cloudflare may reject a generic or missing agent before the API runs; an edge-generated 403 can be plain text or HTML rather than the JSON envelope. See Cloudflare error 1010.

400 · Invalid input
Malformed JSON, missing fields, unsupported options or invalid encoded text. Correct the input before retrying.
403 · Edge request blocked
Check the User-Agent and the Cloudflare error response before retrying.
404 · Unknown endpoint
Use a documented /api/v1/{tool}/ endpoint.
405 · Method not allowed
Use POST. OPTIONS is supported for browser CORS requests.
413 · Size limit exceeded
Reduce the request size or the generated output.
415 · Unsupported media type
Set Content-Type: application/json.
429 · Rate limited
Wait at least the Retry-After number of seconds.
500 / 503 · Service unavailable
Retry later with bounded backoff. Availability is not guaranteed.

API data processing

API inputs are sent over HTTPS and processed in memory by a Cloudflare Worker. The application does not persist submitted text or deliberately log request bodies, and API responses use Cache-Control: no-store. Cloudflare may process network metadata under its own policies. For local processing, use the corresponding browser tool. See the privacy policy.