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How to Decode Base64 Strings in Chrome (No Extension Needed)

Dinsan

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You can decode a Base64 string right in Chrome’s address bar, no extension or website needed.

How to Decode a Base64 String

  1. Open a new tab.
  2. Click the address bar and type data:text/plain;base64, followed by your encoded string, with no space in between.
  3. Press Enter.

For example: data:text/plain;base64,SGV5IGd1eXMhIEhvcGUgeW91J3JlIGRvaW5nIHdlbGwu

Quick Tips

  • This trick also works in Firefox, Edge, and Safari since it relies on the data URI standard, not a Chrome-specific feature.
  • If the string contains special characters and doesn’t decode cleanly, try a dedicated online Base64 tool instead.

Now you can decode Base64 text in seconds without installing anything or visiting a separate website.

Dinsan Avatar
Dinsan

Founder & Editor

Dinsan Francis is the founder of Chrome Story, which he started in 2009 — the same year Google launched Chrome. He has covered the Chrome browser and Chromebook ecosystem for over 15 years and has used Chromebooks as his primary computing device since 2010. He’s always on the bleeding edge, running the Canary build of both Chrome and ChromeOS as daily drivers.

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Comments

3 responses to “How to Decode Base64 Strings in Chrome (No Extension Needed)”

  1. Dan Avatar
    Dan

    There’s also the atob function. Open console and type:

    atob(“SGV5IGd1eXMhIEhvcGUgeW91J3JlIGRvaW5nIHdlbGwu”)

    to get:

    Hey guys! Hope you’re doing well.

    There is also a btoa function, of course.

    Encoding data uris in base64 is common when you are embedding a binary file format such as an image. If you inspect internal chrome pages such as the Settings page you will find them all over.

    Reply
    1. Dinu Avatar
      Dinu

      thanks Dan!
      Do you think you can come up with a list of Chrome features or extensions for developers ? (I assume you are one, reading your comments) ..

      Reply
  2. GAP Avatar
    GAP

    one thing for sure: you don’t have a dev background and don’t know wtf is base64 etc.

    This thing is pretty old, and almost all browsers can do that. pretty poor guy.

    Reply

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