Find and Replace Text
Replace text live with safe literal matching, regex options, and a preview that never overwrites the original.
- Fewer clicks, keyboard friendly
- Features others lock behind paywalls
- Runs in your browser — files never leave your device
Applying saves one undo step. The preview itself never overwrites your text.
How to use
- Paste or type text in “Original text.”
- Enter the text to find and its replacement; the preview and match count update immediately.
- Turn on Match case, Whole words only, or Use regular expression when needed.
- Copy the preview, or choose “Use preview as input” to continue editing it.
- Choose Undo to restore any of the last 10 applied versions during this visit.
Plain text is the safe default
With “Use regular expression” turned off, the Find field is literal. A period in a.b finds the three characters a, period, b; it does not match axb. The replacement is literal too, so replacing a price with $5 inserts a dollar sign rather than interpreting $5 as a capture group. This is the right mode for names, product terms, URLs and repeated typos.
Whole-word matching uses Unicode letters and numbers, not JavaScript’s ASCII-only \b shortcut. For example, finding 가 as a whole word matches 가 between spaces but does not change the first character in 가나다. It also avoids treating the é in café as a word boundary.
Regular expressions use your browser’s JavaScript engine
Turn on regular expressions when a pattern matters more than exact spelling. For example, find (\d{4})-(\d{2})-(\d{2}) and replace it with $3/$2/$1 to change 2026-10-28 into 28/10/2026. Parentheses create numbered capture groups: $1 is the first group and $& is the entire match. Use $$ for a literal dollar sign in a regex replacement.
The tool validates a pattern before changing the preview. JavaScript regular expressions are not PCRE: syntax such as \A and possessive quantifiers is not supported. Very complex patterns can also take a long time in any JavaScript page, so check the match count and preview before applying a broad pattern.
Preview first, then apply only when it looks right
The source editor and preview are separate. Typing a search term never edits the source, and copying the preview does not change it either. “Use preview as input” is for a deliberate next pass and retains up to 10 applied source versions in this tab, so Undo can step back through the changes.
All replacement happens in the browser. The tool saves the text, find term, replacement and options in this browser’s local storage so a refresh does not lose a draft. Clear removes those saved values from this tool; no text is sent to a server.
Frequently asked questions
How do I replace text without treating punctuation as a regular expression?
Leave “Use regular expression” turned off. Plain-text mode escapes characters such as ., *, ?, (, ), [, and ] automatically, so searching for a.b matches only the literal text a.b.
How do I swap parts of a date with find and replace?
Turn on regular expressions, find (\d{4})-(\d{2})-(\d{2}), and replace it with $3/$2/$1. For 2026-10-28, the three capture groups produce 28/10/2026.
What does Whole words only do with Korean text?
Whole words only treats Unicode letters and numbers as part of a word. Searching for 가 matches a standalone 가 but does not replace the 가 inside 가나다, which avoids the ASCII-only word-boundary behavior that can split Korean or accented words incorrectly.
Can I undo a find-and-replace?
Yes. The live preview does not alter the source at all. After choosing “Use preview as input,” Undo restores up to 10 applied versions for the current browser tab.
Is my text uploaded when I use find and replace?
No. Find and replace runs in the browser and text is not sent to a server. The latest draft is stored only in this browser’s local storage until it is cleared.
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Updated 2026-10-28