Regex Escape Online – Escape Special Characters for Regex

How to use the Regex Escape

Paste the literal text you want to match into the input.

Choose the Flavor: JavaScript, PCRE / PHP, Python or Java string literal.

Tick Each line is a separate literal to escape a list of words and join them with |.

Optionally tick Wrap in /…/ to get a ready JavaScript regex literal, then copy the output.

Regex escape: match text literally

A regex escape turns plain text into a pattern that matches only that text. Characters like ., $, ( and * have special meanings in regular expressions, so a search for $19.99 written as-is would never find the price. This tool puts a backslash in front of every metacharacter for the regex flavor you choose.

Example

Input text:

Price: $19.99 (incl. tax) [US]*

JavaScript, PCRE and Python output:

Price: \$19\.99 \(incl\. tax\) \[US\]\*

Java string literal output, with every backslash doubled so it can go straight between quotes in Pattern.compile("…"):

Price: \\$19\\.99 \\(incl\\. tax\\) \\[US\\]\\*

Options explained

JavaScript escapes . * + ? ^ $ { } ( ) | [ ] \ / -. The forward slash is escaped too, so the result is safe inside a /…/ literal.
PCRE / PHP and Python escape the same set but leave / alone and also escape #, which starts a comment when the extended (x) flag is on.
Java string literal produces the pattern and then doubles each backslash for a Java (or Kotlin, C#) string.
Each line is a separate literal escapes every line on its own, drops empty lines and joins the rest with |, which is handy for a list of keywords.
Wrap in /…/ adds the slashes for a JavaScript regex literal.

Line breaks and tabs in the input become \n, \r and \t. With line mode on, the three lines a.b, c+d and 1/2 become /a\.b|c\+d|1\/2/.

Common pitfalls

Double escaping. If you paste the output into a JavaScript string for new RegExp("…"), each backslash must be doubled. Use the Java option or run the result through the JavaScript string escaper.
The u or v flag. In Unicode mode, JavaScript only allows escapes of syntax characters and /. An escaped hyphen (\-) outside a character class then throws "Invalid escape", so remove that backslash if you use u.
Escaping in code instead. PHP has preg_quote() and Python has re.escape(). Use this tool when you are writing a pattern by hand, in a config file or in a search box.

After escaping, paste the pattern into the regex tester to confirm it matches the text you expect.

Privacy

Escaping runs in your browser; the text you paste is not sent anywhere.

Frequently asked questions

Which characters need escaping in a regular expression?

The metacharacters are . * + ? ^ $ { } ( ) | [ ] \. In a JavaScript literal the forward slash must be escaped as well. This tool also escapes the hyphen so the result stays literal if you place it inside a character class.

Why does Java need double backslashes?

Java string literals use the backslash as their own escape character, so the regex \. has to be written as "\\." in source code. The Java option does that doubling for you.

Is this the same as PHP preg_quote or Python re.escape?

It escapes the same kind of characters, so the result matches the same literal text. The exact set can differ slightly between versions, but an extra backslash before a punctuation character is harmless in PCRE and Python.

Can I escape a list of words into one pattern?

Yes. Put one word or phrase per line and enable Each line is a separate literal. Each line is escaped and the lines are joined with |, for example foo\.js|bar.

Regex Escape