What is Hex (Hexadecimal)?

Hexadecimal (or 'Hex') is a base-16 number system. It uses 16 symbols: the numbers 0-9 and the letters A-F (representing 10-15). It's widely used in computing as a human-readable way to represent binary data.

Why is Hex used in programming?

Hex is used because it's a compact and convenient way to represent raw byte values. One byte (8 bits) can be perfectly represented by two hex digits (e.g., 11111111 in binary is 0xFF in hex). This is much easier for developers to read and debug than long strings of binary.

What is the difference between Hex and Base64?

Both represent binary data as text. However, Hex is a direct 1-to-1 mapping (1 byte becomes 2 hex chars, e.g., 'A' -> '41'). Base64 is more compact (3 bytes become 4 chars). Hex is better for low-level byte inspection (like in a 'hex dump'), while Base64 is more efficient for transmitting binary data in text-only systems (like email or JSON).

How do you convert Text to Hex?

Each character in the text is converted to its numerical byte value based on a character encoding (like ASCII or UTF-8). That numerical value is then converted into its 2-digit hexadecimal equivalent. For example, in ASCII, the character 'A' is the number 65, which is '41' in hex.

Hex Encoder / Decoder Tool

Convert text to hexadecimal and back. View text as hex bytes.

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What is Hexadecimal (Hex) Encoding?

Hexadecimal (or "Hex") is a **base-16** number system. It uses 16 symbols: the digits 0-9 and the letters A-F to represent values. Its primary purpose in computing is to provide a **human-readable representation of raw binary data**.

The Problem: Binary data (the 1s and 0s that computers use) is extremely difficult for humans to read. A single byte, like 01001000, is not intuitive.

The Solution: Hex simplifies this. A byte (8 bits) is split into two 4-bit "nibbles." Each 4-bit nibble can be represented by a *single* hex digit.
Example: 0100 = 4, and 1000 = 8. So, the binary 01001000 becomes the much shorter and more readable hex 48.

When you **convert text to hex**, you are taking each character (like 'H'), finding its byte value in a character set (like ASCII or UTF-8), and displaying that byte value as two hex digits.
Example: Hello → 48 65 6C 6C 6F

Key Use Cases for this Converter:

Hex Dumps / File Viewing: A "hex dump" is the content of a file displayed in hex, byte by byte. This is how developers use a **hex editor** to see the raw structure of any file (images, executables, etc.), look for "magic numbers" (file signatures), or debug low-level data.
Character Encoding (ASCII / UTF-8): This tool helps you see the exact byte representation of any text. You can see how a simple ASCII character like 'H' (48) differs from a multi-byte UTF-8 character like '€' (E2 82 AC).
Data Representation: Programmers use hex to represent byte arrays, memory addresses, MAC addresses (e.g., 00:1A:2B...), and web colors (e.g., #FF0000).
Hex vs. Base64: Hex is a direct 1-to-1 byte mapping (1 byte → 2 chars), making it ideal for byte-level inspection. Base64 is more compact (3 bytes → 4 chars) and is better for *transmitting* binary data, not inspecting it.

Hex Encode/Decode Examples

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Hex Encoding Best Practices & Key Concepts

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Myth: Hex is Encryption

Like Base64, Hex is **not encryption**. It is an *encoding*, or more accurately, a *representation*. It provides zero security. Anyone can convert a hex string (like 48656C6C6F) back to text ("Hello") instantly. Never use it to hide sensitive data.

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ASCII vs. UTF-8

The hex output depends entirely on the character encoding used. For basic English (ASCII), the values are simple (e.g., 'a' is 61). But for international characters (like 'é' or '€'), **UTF-8** must be used, which will result in multiple bytes (e.g., 'é' is C3 A9). This tool uses UTF-8 by default for universal compatibility.

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Readability: Spaces & Delimiters

A long hex string like 48656C6C6F is hard to read. In "hex dumps," bytes are traditionally grouped in pairs with spaces (48 65 6C 6C 6F). This formatting is purely for human readability and has no effect on the data itself. Our tool provides options to add spaces or other delimiters for clarity.