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URL Validator

Not sure whether that string is actually a URL? Paste it here and this free URL validator tells you instantly if it is a well-formed http or https address, then breaks it into protocol, host, path and query. It runs locally in your browser.

URL to validate

What is a URL validator?

A URL validator checks whether a string is a properly formed web address. It parses the input and confirms that it has a valid scheme (http or https), a host or domain, and a path, and then reports the parts so you can see exactly how it is structured. This matters because a malformed URL will fail silently in code, break a link, or be rejected by an API. Form validation catches issues like a missing scheme, a bare domain without a protocol, or a random string that is not a URL at all. This tool only accepts http and https (the web protocols) and deliberately does not call the page — it checks the format, not whether the address actually loads. That keeps it instant and completely private, ideal for validating user input, testing a share link, or confirming a value before you build another URL on top of it.

How to use

Paste the string you want to check.
The tool tells you if it is a valid http or https URL.
Valid URLs are broken down into protocol, host, path and query.

Example

Paste https://example.com/path?x=1#frag. The tool returns Valid — a well-formed http/https URL, protocol https, host example.com, path /path and query x=1. Paste hello world and it returns Not a valid http/https URL.

Who is this URL Validator for?

Bad URLs break forms, scripts and links. Validating before a value is stored or published stops errors at the source.

Developers: validate user-entered URLs in a form or a script before saving them to a database.
Writers and content creators: confirm a link is well-formed before it goes into an article.
Marketers: make sure a campaign or tracking URL is syntactically valid before it ships.
Analysts: verify scraped URLs are real before loading them into a dataset.

Valid versus invalid URL examples

The validator checks a string against http/https URL rules. The table shows what passes and what does not, and why.

Input	Result
https://example.com/path?x=1#frag	valid
http://example.com	valid
example.com	invalid
http://	invalid
ftp://example.com	invalid
https://localhost:3000	valid

Common use cases

Validating user-entered URLs in a form or script before saving them.
Confirming a link you're about to build or share is well formed.
Checking that scraped or imported strings are real URLs, not arbitrary text.
Seeing the protocol, host, path and query of a URL you inherited.

Pro tips

Include the scheme (https://) — a bare domain like example.com is not accepted as a full URL.
Read the host breakdown to confirm the domain, port and path are what you expect.
This checks format only; to test that a page responds, open it in a new tab.
Pair with the URL Parser to explore more parts like port, username and fragment.

FAQ

What makes a URL valid?

A valid URL has a scheme (http or https), a host or domain, and a path. This tool checks the format and only accepts http and https URLs.

Does it test if the link actually works?

No — it checks the format of the URL, not whether the page is reachable. It confirms the string is a well-formed http or https URL.

Does it accept ftp or other schemes?

No — only http and https URLs are treated as valid, since those are the web protocols.

Does it need the https:// prefix?

Yes. A bare domain such as example.com is not a full URL; include http:// or https:// to validate it.

What does it show for a valid URL?

The protocol, host, path and query are shown so you can see exactly how the URL is built.

Is it private?

Yes — it runs entirely in your browser and nothing is uploaded.

Is it free?

Yes, free and unlimited with no signup.

Can it validate URLs in a list?

Paste one at a time; for a whole list, use it together with the domain extractor to pull hosts first.