- Base64 is an encoding scheme that enables a safe standard for transmission of binary data over channels that only reliably support text data.
- Highlight the data, select Plugins > MIME Tools, and select the encoding/decoding option.
- For general purposes, “Base64 Encode with padding” is recommended.
How to Convert and Decode Base64 Data on Notepad ++
Here’s how you can easily encode and decode Base64 data on Notepad ++ on your PC.
Step 1: Open the document on Notepad ++.
To encode or decode Base64 data you need to first highlight the entire range of data you want to be encoded or decoded.
Step 2: Next, click on Plugins in the top bar, then MIME Tools . In the second level of the menu, you can see all of the Base64 encode and decode options.
Note: The encoders only work on selected data, make sure you highlight all the data you want encoded first.
Here’s what all of the encoding and decoding options do on Notepad ++.
- “Base64 Encode” encodes all of the selected data into one Base64 string but omits the padding character even if it’s needed. This could cause compatibility issues with some Base64 decoders.
- “Base64 Encode with padding” encodes all selected data but includes the padding where it’s needed.
- “Base64 Encode with Unix EOL” specifically uses an “End Of Line” (EOL) character used by Unix systems, rather than the default Windows EOL. This can be helpful if a Unix-based command-line decoder is failing to decode the data.
- “Base64 Encode by line” encodes each separate line of data into a separate Base64 string.
- “Base64 Decode” decodes a single Base64 encoded string but may show corrupted output if there are unexpected characters.
- “Base64 Decode strict” decodes a single Base64 string but will throw an error message if an unexpected character is detected, such as “&”.
- “Base64 Decode by line” can decode multiple separate Base64 strings at once if they’re on new lines.
Also Read : Top 10 Notepad++ Plugins .
Encoding data to Base64 typically increases the size of the data by approximately 33%.
You can download Notepad ++ from the official website .
Yes. Notepad ++ is free to install and use on Windows.
If you try to decode data that is not Base64-encoded, you’ll likely get a decoding error, and the output may be unreadable.
Yes, there is a difference between URL-safe Base64 and standard Base64 encoding. URL-safe Base64 uses different characters for the “+” and “/” symbols to make the encoded data safe for use in URLs and filenames.
Ensure that you have installed Notepad++ correctly. Try re-installing Notepad ++ to fix the problem.
