Binary, Hexadecimal, Octal Functions in PHP

Author — Nitish Kumar

PHP base_convert() Function

PHP base_convert() Usage

The PHP base_convert() function will convert a number between arbitrary bases.

PHP base_convert() Syntax

 base_convert ( string $number , int $frombase , int $tobase ) : string

PHP base_convert() Parameters

1. number — The number to convert. Any invalid characters in number are silently ignored. As of PHP 7.4.0 supplying any invalid characters is deprecated.

2. frombase — The base number is in

3. tobase — The base to convert number to

PHP base_convert() Return Value

The PHP base_convert() function returns number converted to base tobase

PHP base_convert() Working Examples

1. base_convert() example

<?php
$hexadecimal = 'a37334';
echo base_convert($hexadecimal, 16, 2);
?>

Output of the above code:

101000110111001100110100

Changelog for PHP base_convert() Function

7.4.0 — Passing invalid characters will now generate a deprecation notice. The result will still be computed as if the invalid characters did not exist.

Important Points about PHP base_convert() Function

1. base_convert() may lose precision on large numbers due to properties related to the internal “double” or “float” type used. Please see the Floating point numbers section in the manual for more specific information and limitations.

Additional Tips from Fellow Developers

Contributed By: PHPCoder

Convert an arbitrarily large number from any base to any base.
string convBase(string $numberInput, string $fromBaseInput, string $toBaseInput)
$numberInput number to convert as a string
$fromBaseInput base of the number to convert as a string
$toBaseInput base the number should be converted to as a string
examples for $fromBaseInput and $toBaseInput
'0123456789ABCDEF' for Hexadecimal (Base16)
'0123456789' for Decimal (Base10)
'01234567' for Octal (Base8)
'01' for Binary (Base2) 
You can really put in whatever you want and the first character is the 0.
Examples:

<?php 
convBase('123', '0123456789', '01234567'); 
//Convert '123' from decimal (base10) to octal (base8).
//result: 173
convBase('70B1D707EAC2EDF4C6389F440C7294B51FFF57BB', '0123456789ABCDEF', '01');
//Convert '70B1D707EAC2EDF4C6389F440C7294B51FFF57BB' from hexadecimal (base16) to binary (base2).
//result: 
//111000010110001110101110000011111101010110000101110
//110111110100110001100011100010011111010001000000110
//001110010100101001011010100011111111111110101011110
//111011
convBase('1324523453243154324542341524315432113200203012', '012345', '0123456789ABCDEF');
//Convert '1324523453243154324542341524315432113200203012' from senary (base6) to hexadecimal (base16).
//result: 1F9881BAD10454A8C23A838EF00F50
convBase('355927353784509896715106760','0123456789','Christopher');
//Convert '355927353784509896715106760' from decimal (base10) to undecimal (base11) using "Christopher" as the numbers.
//result: iihtspiphoeCrCeshhorsrrtrh
convBase('1C238Ab97132aAC84B72','0123456789aAbBcCdD', '~!@#$%^&*()');
//Convert'1C238Ab97132aAC84B72' from octodecimal (base18) using '0123456789aAbBcCdD' as the numbers to undecimal (base11) using '~!@#$%^&*()' as the numbers.
//result: !%~!!*&!~^!!&(&!~^@#@@@&
function convBase($numberInput, $fromBaseInput, $toBaseInput)
{
    if ($fromBaseInput==$toBaseInput) return $numberInput;
    $fromBase = str_split($fromBaseInput,1);
    $toBase = str_split($toBaseInput,1);
    $number = str_split($numberInput,1);
    $fromLen=strlen($fromBaseInput);
    $toLen=strlen($toBaseInput);
    $numberLen=strlen($numberInput);
    $retval='';
    if ($toBaseInput == '0123456789')
    {
        $retval=0;
        for ($i = 1;$i <= $numberLen; $i++)
            $retval = bcadd($retval, bcmul(array_search($number[$i-1], $fromBase),bcpow($fromLen,$numberLen-$i)));
        return $retval;
    }
    if ($fromBaseInput != '0123456789')
        $base10=convBase($numberInput, $fromBaseInput, '0123456789');
    else
        $base10 = $numberInput;
    if ($base10<strlen($toBaseInput))
        return $toBase[$base10];
    while($base10 != '0')
    {
        $retval = $toBase[bcmod($base10,$toLen)].$retval;
        $base10 = bcdiv($base10,$toLen,0);
    }
    return $retval;
}
?>

Contributed By: JR

Short arabic2roman conveter: 
 

<?php 
function rome($N){ 
        $c='IVXLCDM'; 
        for($a=5,$b=$s='';$N;$b++,$a^=7) 
                for($o=$N%$a,$N=$N/$a^0;$o--;$s=$c[$o>2?$b+$N-($N&=-2)+$o=1:$b].$s); 
        return $s; 
} 
?>
 
 
And it works :)

Contributed By: Clifford dot ct

If you use base_convert to convert a large (eg. 80-bit) hexadecimal to base-36, you might observe: 
 
ABCDEF00001234567890 (hexadecimal) => 3O47RE02JZSW0KS8 (base-36) => ABCDEF00001240000000 (hexadecimal) 
 
This is normal and is due to the loss of precision on large numbers. 
 
I have written a string-based function using the built-in BC Math Extension which will overcome this and similar problems. 
 

<?php 
 
function str_baseconvert($str, $frombase=10, $tobase=36) { 
    $str = trim($str); 
    if (intval($frombase) != 10) { 
        $len = strlen($str); 
        $q = 0; 
        for ($i=0; $i<$len; $i++) { 
            $r = base_convert($str[$i], $frombase, 10); 
            $q = bcadd(bcmul($q, $frombase), $r); 
        } 
    } 
    else $q = $str; 
 
    if (intval($tobase) != 10) { 
        $s = ''; 
        while (bccomp($q, '0', 0) > 0) { 
            $r = intval(bcmod($q, $tobase)); 
            $s = base_convert($r, 10, $tobase) . $s; 
            $q = bcdiv($q, $tobase, 0); 
        } 
    } 
    else $s = $q; 
 
    return $s; 
} 
 
?>
 
 
Typical use-cases: 
1.  Convert a large arbitrary precision number to base-36. 
2.  Convert a 32-char hexadecimal UUID (128-bit) to a 25-char base-36 unique key, and vice versa. 
 
Examples: 
 

<?php 
$b16 = 'ABCDEF00001234567890'; 
$b36 = str_baseconvert($b16, 16, 36); 
echo ("$b16 (hexadecimal) = $b36 (base-36) \\n"); 
 
$uuid = 'ABCDEF01234567890123456789ABCDEF'; 
$ukey = str_baseconvert($uuid, 16, 36); 
echo ("$uuid (hexadecimal) = $ukey (base-36) \\n"); 
?>
 
 
ABCDEF00001234567890 (hexadecimal) = 3o47re02jzqisvio (base-36) 
ABCDEF01234567890123456789ABCDEF (hexadecimal) = a65xa07491kf5zyfpvbo76g33 (base-36)

PHP bindec() Function

PHP bindec() Usage

The PHP bindec() function will give you the decimal equivalent of the binary number represented by the binary_string argument.

PHP bindec() Syntax

 bindec ( string $binary_string ) : number

PHP bindec() Parameters

1. binary_string — The binary string to convert. Any invalid characters in binary_string are silently ignored. As of PHP 7.4.0 supplying any invalid characters is deprecated.

PHP bindec() Return Value

The PHP bindec() function returns the decimal value of binary_string

PHP bindec() Working Examples

1. bindec() example

<?php
echo bindec('110011') . "\n";
echo bindec('000110011') . "\n";
echo bindec('111');
?>

Output of the above code:

51
51
7

2. bindec() interprets input as unsigned integers

<?php
/*
 * The lesson from this example is in the output
 * rather than the PHP code itself.
 */
$magnitude_lower = pow(2, (PHP_INT_SIZE * 8) - 2);
p($magnitude_lower - 1);
p($magnitude_lower, 'See the rollover?  Watch it next time around...');
p(PHP_INT_MAX, 'PHP_INT_MAX');
p(~PHP_INT_MAX, 'interpreted to be one more than PHP_INT_MAX');
if (PHP_INT_SIZE == 4) {
    $note = 'interpreted to be the largest unsigned integer';
} else {
    $note = 'interpreted to be the largest unsigned integer
              (18446744073709551615) but skewed by float precision';
}
p(-1, $note);
function p($input, $note = '') {
    echo "input:        $input\n";
    $format = '%0' . (PHP_INT_SIZE * 8) . 'b';
    $bin = sprintf($format, $input);
    echo "binary:       $bin\n";
    ini_set('precision', 20);  // For readability on 64 bit boxes.
    $dec = bindec($bin);
    echo 'bindec():     ' . $dec . "\n";
    if ($note) {
        echo "NOTE:         $note\n";
    }
    echo "\n";
}
?>

Output of the above code:

input: 1073741823
binary: 00111111111111111111111111111111
bindec(): 1073741823
input: 1073741824
binary: 01000000000000000000000000000000
bindec(): 1073741824
NOTE: See the rollover? Watch it next time around...
input: 2147483647
binary: 01111111111111111111111111111111
bindec(): 2147483647
NOTE: PHP_INT_MAX
input: -2147483648
binary: 10000000000000000000000000000000
bindec(): 2147483648
NOTE: interpreted to be one more than PHP_INT_MAX
input: -1
binary: 11111111111111111111111111111111
bindec(): 4294967295
NOTE: interpreted to be the largest unsigned integer

Changelog for PHP bindec() Function

7.4.0 — Passing invalid characters will now generate a deprecation notice. The result will still be computed as if the invalid characters did not exist.

Important Points about PHP bindec() Function

1. The parameter must be a string. Using other data types will produce unexpected results.

2. The function can convert numbers that are too large to fit into the platforms integer type, larger values are returned as float in that case.

PHP decbin() Function

PHP decbin() Usage

The PHP decbin() function will give you a string containing a binary representation of the given number argument.

PHP decbin() Syntax

 decbin ( int $number ) : string

PHP decbin() Parameters

1. number — Decimal value to convert

PHP decbin() Return Value

The PHP decbin() function returns binary string representation of number

PHP decbin() Working Examples

1. decbin() example

<?php
echo decbin(12) . "\n";
echo decbin(26);
?>

Output of the above code:

1100
11010

Additional Tips from Fellow Developers

Contributed By: MarcelG

To add leading zeros I prefer the following:

<?php
// Add leading zeros
$bin = sprintf( "%08d", decbin( 26 )); // "00011010"
?>

PHP dechex() Function

PHP dechex() Usage

The PHP dechex() function will give you a string containing a hexadecimal representation of the given unsigned number argument.

PHP dechex() Syntax

 dechex ( int $number ) : string

PHP dechex() Parameters

1. number — The decimal value to convert.

PHP dechex() Return Value

The PHP dechex() function returns hexadecimal string representation of number.

PHP dechex() Working Examples

1. dechex() example

<?php
echo dechex(10) . "\n";
echo dechex(47);
?>

Output of the above code:

a
2f

2. dechex() example with large integers

<?php
// The output below assumes a 32-bit platform.
// Note that the output is the same for all values.
echo dechex(-1)."\n";
echo dechex(PHP_INT_MAX * 2 + 1)."\n";
echo dechex(pow(2, 32) - 1)."\n";
?>

Output of the above code:

ffffffff
ffffffff
ffffffff

Additional Tips from Fellow Developers

Contributed By: brent

Be very careful calling dechex on a number if it's stored in a string.
For instance:
The max number it can handle is 4294967295 which in hex is FFFFFFFF, as it says in the documentation.
dechex(4294967295) => FFFFFFFF //CORRECT
BUT, if you call it on a string of a number, it casts to int, and automatically gives you the largest int it can handle.
dechex('4294967295') => 7FFFFFFF //WRONG!
so you'll need to cast to a float:
dechex((float) '4294967295') => FFFFFFFF //CORRECT
This took me FOREVER to figure out, so hopefully I just saved someone some time.

Contributed By: joost

Here are two functions that will convert large dec numbers to hex and vice versa. And I really mean LARGE, much larger than any function posted earlier.
<pre>
// Input: A decimal number as a String.
// Output: The equivalent hexadecimal number as a String.
function dec2hex($number)
{
    $hexvalues = array('0','1','2','3','4','5','6','7',
               '8','9','A','B','C','D','E','F');
    $hexval = '';
     while($number != '0')
     {
        $hexval = $hexvalues[bcmod($number,'16')].$hexval;
        $number = bcdiv($number,'16',0);
    }
    return $hexval;
}
// Input: A hexadecimal number as a String.
// Output: The equivalent decimal number as a String.
function hex2dec($number)
{
    $decvalues = array('0' => '0', '1' => '1', '2' => '2',
               '3' => '3', '4' => '4', '5' => '5',
               '6' => '6', '7' => '7', '8' => '8',
               '9' => '9', 'A' => '10', 'B' => '11',
               'C' => '12', 'D' => '13', 'E' => '14',
               'F' => '15');
    $decval = '0';
    $number = strrev($number);
    for($i = 0; $i < strlen($number); $i++)
    {
        $decval = bcadd(bcmul(bcpow('16',$i,0),$decvalues[$number{$i}]), $decval);
    }
    return $decval;
}
</pre>

PHP decoct() Function

PHP decoct() Usage

The PHP decoct() function will give you a string containing an octal representation of the given number argument. The largest number that can be converted depends on the platform in use. For 32-bit platforms this is usually 4294967295 in decimal resulting in 37777777777. For 64-bit platforms this is usually 9223372036854775807 in decimal resulting in 777777777777777777777.

PHP decoct() Syntax

 decoct ( int $number ) : string

PHP decoct() Parameters

1. number — Decimal value to convert

PHP decoct() Return Value

The PHP decoct() function returns octal string representation of number

PHP decoct() Working Examples

1. decoct() example

<?php
echo decoct(15) . "\n";
echo decoct(264);
?>

Output of the above code:

17
410

PHP hexdec() Function

PHP hexdec() Usage

The PHP hexdec() function will give you the decimal equivalent of the hexadecimal number represented by the hex_string argument. hexdec() converts a hexadecimal string to a decimal number.

PHP hexdec() Syntax

 hexdec ( string $hex_string ) : number

PHP hexdec() Parameters

1. hex_string — The hexadecimal string to convert

PHP hexdec() Return Value

The PHP hexdec() function returns the decimal representation of hex_string

PHP hexdec() Working Examples

1. hexdec() example

<?php
var_dump(hexdec("See"));
var_dump(hexdec("ee"));
// both print "int(238)"
var_dump(hexdec("that")); // print "int(10)"
var_dump(hexdec("a0")); // print "int(160)"
?>

Changelog for PHP hexdec() Function

7.4.0 — Passing invalid characters will now generate a deprecation notice. The result will still be computed as if the invalid characters did not exist.

Important Points about PHP hexdec() Function

1. The function can convert numbers that are too large to fit into the platforms integer type, larger values are returned as float in that case.

Additional Tips from Fellow Developers

Contributed By: hafees

Use this function to convert a hexa decimal color code to its RGB equivalent. Unlike many other functions provided here, it will work correctly with hex color short hand notation.
Also, if a proper hexa decimal color value is given (6 digits), it uses bit wise operations for faster results.
For eg: #FFF and #FFFFFF will produce the same result

<?php
/**
 * Convert a hexa decimal color code to its RGB equivalent
 *
 * @param string $hexStr (hexadecimal color value)
 * @param boolean $returnAsString (if set true, returns the value separated by the separator character. Otherwise returns associative array)
 * @param string $seperator (to separate RGB values. Applicable only if second parameter is true.)
 * @return array or string (depending on second parameter. Returns False if invalid hex color value)
 */                                                                                                 
function hex2RGB($hexStr, $returnAsString = false, $seperator = ',') {
    $hexStr = preg_replace("/[^0-9A-Fa-f]/", '', $hexStr); // Gets a proper hex string
    $rgbArray = array();
    if (strlen($hexStr) == 6) { //If a proper hex code, convert using bitwise operation. No overhead... faster
        $colorVal = hexdec($hexStr);
        $rgbArray['red'] = 0xFF & ($colorVal >> 0x10);
        $rgbArray['green'] = 0xFF & ($colorVal >> 0x8);
        $rgbArray['blue'] = 0xFF & $colorVal;
    } elseif (strlen($hexStr) == 3) { //if shorthand notation, need some string manipulations
        $rgbArray['red'] = hexdec(str_repeat(substr($hexStr, 0, 1), 2));
        $rgbArray['green'] = hexdec(str_repeat(substr($hexStr, 1, 1), 2));
        $rgbArray['blue'] = hexdec(str_repeat(substr($hexStr, 2, 1), 2));
    } else {
        return false; //Invalid hex color code
    }
    return $returnAsString ? implode($seperator, $rgbArray) : $rgbArray; // returns the rgb string or the associative array
} ?>

OUTPUT:
hex2RGB("#FF0") -> array( red =>255, green => 255, blue => 0)
hex2RGB("#FFFF00) -> Same as above
hex2RGB("#FF0", true) -> 255,255,0
hex2RGB("#FF0", true, ":") -> 255:255:0

PHP octdec() Function

PHP octdec() Usage

The PHP octdec() function will give you the decimal equivalent of the octal number represented by the octal_string argument.

PHP octdec() Syntax

 octdec ( string $octal_string ) : number

PHP octdec() Parameters

1. octal_string — The octal string to convert. Any invalid characters in octal_string are silently ignored. As of PHP 7.4.0 supplying any invalid characters is deprecated.

PHP octdec() Return Value

The PHP octdec() function returns the decimal representation of octal_string

PHP octdec() Working Examples

1. octdec() example

<?php
echo octdec('77') . "\n";
echo octdec(decoct(45));
?>

Output of the above code:

63
45

Changelog for PHP octdec() Function

7.4.0 — Passing invalid characters will now generate a deprecation notice. The result will still be computed as if the invalid characters did not exist.

Important Points about PHP octdec() Function

1. The function can convert numbers that are too large to fit into the platforms integer type, larger values are returned as float in that case.

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Robert

4 years ago

thank you for sharing

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