Why this tool is useful
Use this cleaner when copied identifiers, URLs or search terms behave differently from how they look because invisible formatting characters are embedded.
Text & List Tools · runs locally
Zero-Width Character Cleaner
Reveal or remove zero-width spaces, joiners, word joiners, byte-order marks and soft hyphens with an exact per-code-point report.
Ready. Your working data stays in this browser.
How it works
A fixed conservative allowlist identifies zero-width and discretionary characters. The tool either removes them or inserts readable labels and reports every position.
Practical example
YT[ZERO WIDTH SPACE]Save makes the hidden U+200B visible in reveal mode; remove mode returns plain YTSave.
Validation
The calculation is deterministic and explains validation errors instead of silently changing invalid input.
Privacy boundary
Input and output remain in this tab. Copy and download happen through browser APIs without a server upload.
Result passport
Every run reports its tool mode, timestamp and input/output size so transformed data can be audited.