Base64 Encoding: Use Cases and Examples

What Is Base64?

Base64 is a binary-to-text encoding scheme that represents binary data in ASCII string format. It's commonly used to encode data that needs to be stored and transferred over media designed to handle text.

How Base64 Works

Base64 uses 64 characters (A-Z, a-z, 0-9, +, /) to represent 6 bits of data. Every 3 bytes of binary data become 4 Base64 characters.

Example

```

Plain text: Hello

Base64: SGVsbG8=

```

Common Use Cases

1. Email Attachments

Email was originally designed to handle only text. Base64 encoding allows binary files (images, documents) to be sent as text.

2. Data URLs

Embed small images directly in CSS or HTML:

```html

<img src="data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgo...">

```

3. API Authentication

Many APIs use Base64-encoded credentials:

```

Authorization: Basic dXNlcm5hbWU6cGFzc3dvcmQ=

```

4. JSON Data

Binary data in JSON must be Base64 encoded:

```json

{

"file": "SGVsbG8gV29ybGQh"

}

```

5. Configuration Files

Store binary certificates or keys as text in config files.

Base64 Limitations

Size Increase

Base64 increases data size by approximately 33%. 3 bytes become 4 characters.

Not Encryption

Base64 is NOT encryption. It can be easily decoded. Don't use it for security.

Performance

Encoding and decoding adds processing overhead for large files.

Best Practices

• Use for small data only (under 1MB)
• Don't use for encryption (use proper encryption algorithms)
• Handle encoding errors gracefully
• Consider alternatives for large binary data

Common Tools

• Online Base64 encoders/decoders
• Command line: base64 command
• Programming libraries in every language

Try our Base64 Encoder to encode and decode instantly!