Image to Base64 Converter

About Image to Base64 Conversion

Converting images to Base64 format allows you to embed image data directly into HTML, CSS, or JavaScript files. This can be useful for small images where you want to reduce HTTP requests or when you need to include images in places where external image URLs aren't practical.

How It Works

The conversion process follows these steps:

  1. The image file is read as binary data
  2. The binary data is encoded using Base64 encoding
  3. Optional: The Base64 string is prefixed with a Data URI scheme for direct use in HTML/CSS

Common Use Cases

  • Embedding small images directly in HTML or CSS
  • Creating single-file HTML documents with embedded images
  • Storing images in JSON data
  • Sending images through APIs that only accept text data
  • Creating data URIs for background images in CSS

Best Practices

  • Use Base64 for small images only (under ~10KB) to avoid bloating your code
  • Consider the 33% size increase when encoding to Base64
  • Remember that Base64 images cannot be cached separately by browsers
  • Use Data URIs when you need to embed images in HTML/CSS
  • Consider performance implications for large images

Technical Details

When converting an image to Base64, the binary data is encoded using a 64-character subset of ASCII. The Data URI scheme used for images follows this format:

data:[<media type>][;base64],<data> Example: data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAUA...

The media type specifies the image format (e.g., image/png, image/jpeg, image/gif). This helps browsers correctly interpret and display the embedded image data.