Find and Replace

What this tool does

Paste text, type what to find, and type the replacement. You can change the first match or every match, and you can ignore letter case.

How to use

1. Paste the original text.
2. Enter the text to find. A blank find box is rejected.
3. Enter the replacement. Leave it blank if you want to delete the matches.
4. Choose Replace first or Replace all, and turn Case-sensitive on or off.
5. Press Replace, then copy the result or clear the form.

Examples

• Fix a repeated name

  Original: “Ana sent the file. ana sent the notes.” Find: ana. Replacement: Ana. Case-sensitive off, Replace all. Both names become Ana, and the count is 2.

• Change only the first heading

  A draft repeats “Draft” three times. Replace first changes the first one and leaves the other two. The count is 1.

Main features

• First match or every non-overlapping match.
• Case-sensitive matching, or a case-insensitive search that still inserts your replacement as typed.
• A count of how many replacements were made.

How it works

The search walks the original text from the start. After a match, the next search begins after that match, so a replacement is not searched again. Case-insensitive mode compares lowercase copies but does not change the surrounding text.

Tips

• If you need a pattern such as “any number,” use the regex tester. This tool looks for the exact characters you type.
• A replacement that contains the search text is inserted as-is. It is not replaced again in the same pass.

Limitations

This is not a regular expression. It does not match word boundaries, and it does not skip text inside quotes. Overlapping matches are not counted twice.

See the disclaimer for what these tools do not cover.

FAQ

Can I delete the matches?

Yes. Leave the replacement empty. Each match is removed and still counts as a replacement.

Why did a short word change inside a longer word?

The search is a character search. Finding “cat” also matches the start of “catalog.” Add spaces if you only want a whole word, or use the regex tester with a word boundary.

Is my input sent to a server?

No. The text and the search string stay in this tab. They are not posted to a server.

How do I replace a word everywhere in a text?

Enter the word to find and its replacement, choose Replace all, and copy the result. Turn on case-sensitive search if capitals matter.

Does find and replace support regular expressions?

No. It matches the exact text you type. For pattern matching, test the pattern in the Regex Tester first.

Related tools

Helpful guides