Encode text to Ascii85 (Base85) or decode Ascii85 to text. Supports Standard (btoa), Z85 (ZeroMQ), and Adobe variants.
Enter your text or Ascii85 string
Paste the text you want to encode, or an Ascii85 (Base85) string you want to decode.
Select the encoding variant
Choose between Standard (btoa), Z85 (ZeroMQ), or Adobe (with <~ ~> delimiters) variants.
Click Encode or Decode
Click Encode to convert text to Ascii85 or Decode to convert Ascii85 back to text, then copy the result.
Yes, this Ascii85 (Base85) tool is completely free with no usage limits. Encode or decode as many strings as you need without any registration or payment required.
Yes, your data is completely secure. All Ascii85 encoding and decoding operations happen locally in your browser using JavaScript. No data is ever transmitted to our servers or any third party. Your sensitive information stays on your device at all times.
Ascii85 (also called Base85) is primarily used in Adobe PDF and PostScript files to encode binary data as ASCII text. It is more efficient than Base64, with only 25% overhead compared to 33%, because it encodes 4 bytes into 5 characters instead of 3 bytes into 4 characters. The Adobe variant wraps encoded data in <~ and ~> delimiters.
Standard (btoa) uses ASCII characters 33-117 ('!' to 'u') and is the original encoding. Adobe variant is the same but wraps output in <~ and ~> delimiters for use in PDF/PostScript. Z85 (ZeroMQ) uses a different 85-character set that avoids quotes and backslashes, making it safer for use in strings and JSON.
Ascii85 is more efficient than Base64 with only 25% size overhead versus 33%. This is because Ascii85 encodes 4 bytes into 5 characters, while Base64 encodes 3 bytes into 4 characters. However, Base64 is more widely supported and commonly used. Ascii85 is mainly used in PDF, PostScript, and specialized applications where the space savings matter.