Mojibake Converter

Paste garbled Japanese text and this free tool auto-detects encoding misreads (UTF-8, Shift_JIS, etc.) to restore the original text. It also supports file restoration and an intentional Mojibake Maker.

Input
Never sent to server

How to Use This Tool

  1. Copy the garbled textSelect and copy the garbled portion from your email, web page, CSV file, or wherever it appears.
  2. Paste it into the toolOpen the DevPick Mojibake Converter and paste the text into the input box. Auto-detection starts instantly.
  3. Pick the correct restoration candidateThe ★ Recommended candidate is the most likely restoration. Use the confidence badges (high/medium/low) to verify the result reads as natural Japanese.
  4. Copy the result back to its original locationUse the copy button to grab the restored text, then paste it back into your email client, Excel, editor, or wherever needed.

To restore a garbled file, select it via the upload button or drag and drop it directly. File upload analyzes the raw bytes, so it restores with higher accuracy than pasted text. If auto-detection does not restore the text correctly, expand the manual panel and select the original and misread encodings yourself.

Mojibake Maker — intentionally garble text

The "Mojibake Maker" tab generates intentionally garbled strings from normal text. It reproduces five patterns: UTF-8 opened as Shift_JIS (garbled kanji like 縺 and 譁), as EUC-JP, as Latin-1 (æ, ã…), raw URL-encoded text (%E3%81…), and raw MIME-encoded mail headers (=?UTF-8?B?…?=). Useful for creating encoding test data, reproducing mojibake for demos, or making joke strings for social media. Send any generated string to the restore tab with "Try restoring this string" to verify this tool can turn it back on the spot.

FAQ

How do I restore garbled text?
Paste the garbled text into this tool and it will automatically detect the encoding and show restoration candidates.
What causes mojibake?
Mojibake occurs when text is opened with an encoding different from the one it was saved in.
Why does UTF-8 text get garbled?
UTF-8 text gets garbled when an application assumes a different encoding like Shift_JIS.
How do I convert CSV encoding to UTF-8?
Upload the CSV file using this tool to auto-detect its encoding and view the correctly decoded content.
How do I fix garbled text on a website?
Check the meta charset tag and Content-Type header to ensure the correct encoding is specified.
Is there a free mojibake converter tool?
Yes, this DevPick Mojibake Converter is completely free. All processing happens in your browser.
Excel shows garbled text when opening a CSV — how to fix?
Use Excel's Data tab > 'From Text/CSV' and select UTF-8 encoding, or upload the CSV here for auto-detection and copy the restored content.
Can I restore garbled email subject or body?
Yes. Paste the garbled text here for auto-detection. For attachment filenames in MIME format, decode the Base64 first before pasting.
Is there an online site to convert mojibake for free?
This DevPick page is a free online mojibake converter. No install, no signup, no ads. All processing happens in your browser.
How do I fix mojibake without a tool?
Depends on the source: fix meta charset for websites, choose UTF-8 in Excel's data import, switch encoding in Notepad. For already-garbled text you can't re-import, use this tool.
How do I intentionally garble text?
Enter normal text in the "Mojibake Maker" tab to generate strings that reproduce how UTF-8 text looks when opened as Shift_JIS, EUC-JP, or Latin-1, plus raw URL-encoded and MIME-encoded forms. Useful for creating test data for encoding handling or reproducing mojibake for demos.
Can strings made with the Mojibake Maker be restored?
It depends on the pattern. If no information was lost during generation, the "Try restoring this string" button sends it to the restore tab in manual mode and turns it back completely. If replacement characters (�) appeared during conversion, some information was lost and full restoration is not possible.

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