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Find and Replace Text Find and replace text with support for regex, case sensitivity, and bulk operations.

Find and Replace illustration
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Find and Replace

Find and replace text with support for regex, case sensitivity, and bulk operations.

1

Enter Your Text

Paste the text in which you want to find and replace content.

2

Set Search & Replace

Enter what to find and what to replace it with. Toggle regex and case-sensitivity options.

3

View Results

See all replacements applied instantly in the output. Copy the result when satisfied.

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What Is Find and Replace?

A Find and Replace is a text editing tool that searches for specific text patterns in a given input and replaces them with new content, allowing users to modify their text efficiently. Developers, data analysts, and content managers use it to solve the problem of making identical changes across large blocks of text, such as when refactoring code or cleaning up datasets.

This particular implementation stands out due to its support for regex find and replace, which enables advanced pattern matching capabilities. The tool also includes options for case-sensitive searching, allowing users to choose between exact matches and flexible replacements. For instance, the `useRegex` flag in the code toggles between treating the search query as a literal string or a regular expression, while the `caseSensitive` flag determines whether the search should be sensitive to character casing.

It includes features like bulk text search and replace, making it ideal for tasks that involve processing large amounts of text. When using regex, the tool constructs a RegExp object with flags set based on the case sensitivity option, enabling searches like how to find and replace with regex in a straightforward manner. The `onProcess` function handles the actual replacement logic, splitting the input string into parts when not using regex or employing the `replace` method of the String object when regex is enabled.

Why Use Find and Replace?

  • Regex support for pattern matching with capture groups
  • Toggle case-sensitive or case-insensitive searching
  • Replace all occurrences simultaneously
  • Preview results before committing changes
  • Handles large text inputs efficiently

Common Use Cases

Data Cleaning

Replace inconsistent formatting, fix typos, or normalize data across large text datasets.

Code Refactoring

Rename variables, functions, or class names across code snippets using regex patterns.

Content Editing

Update product names, URLs, or terminology across documentation or marketing copy.

Format Conversion

Use regex to transform data formats, like converting dates from MM/DD/YYYY to YYYY-MM-DD.

Technical Guide

The tool performs text substitution using JavaScript's String.replace() method with either literal strings or regular expressions. In literal mode, the search term is escaped to prevent regex special characters from being interpreted as patterns. The global flag (g) ensures all occurrences are replaced, not just the first. In regex mode, the user's pattern is compiled into a RegExp object with the global flag and optionally the case-insensitive flag (i). Error handling catches invalid regex patterns and displays a friendly error message. The replacement string supports regex backreferences ($1, $2, etc.) in regex mode for capturing group substitutions.

Tips & Best Practices

  • 1
    Enable regex mode for pattern-based replacements like date format conversion
  • 2
    Use \b in regex to match whole words only: \bcat\b won't match "category"
  • 3
    Leave the replace field empty to delete all matches
  • 4
    In regex mode, use $1, $2 for capturing group backreferences
  • 5
    Test with a small sample first before running on large texts

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Frequently Asked Questions

Q What is regex mode?
Regex (regular expressions) mode lets you search for patterns instead of exact text. For example, \d+ matches any sequence of digits.
Q Does it replace all occurrences?
Yes, the tool replaces all occurrences by default, not just the first one.
Q What if my regex pattern is invalid?
The tool displays an error message indicating the regex pattern is invalid, and your text remains unchanged.
Q Can I use capture groups?
Yes, in regex mode use parentheses to capture groups and $1, $2, etc. in the replacement for backreferences.
Q Is the search case-sensitive?
By default it's case-insensitive. Toggle the case-sensitive option for exact case matching.

About This Tool

Find and Replace is a free online tool by FreeToolkit.ai. All processing happens directly in your browser — your data never leaves your device. No registration or installation required.