Goal
Option A
Transport compatibility
Option B
Confidentiality
FAQ Guide
Base64 vs Encryption
Base64 is reversible encoding for transport. Encryption is a security control designed to protect data from unauthorized reading.
Quick comparison
Reversible by anyone
Option A
Yes
Option B
No, key required
Best for
Option A
Payload encoding
Option B
Sensitive data
Questions and answers
Is Base64 secure?
No. Anyone can decode it, so do not use it to hide secrets.
Why do tokens look like Base64?
Some token parts are encoded for transport and inspection, not necessarily encrypted.
What should I do with passwords?
Use proper secret storage and encryption practices rather than encoding them.