SHA256Sum Calculator

Text

Recalculated on every keystroke - encoded as UTF-8, without a trailing newline.

SHA-256 Compare with (optional)

Files

Several files at once are fine - each individual file gets its own checksum.

Compare with (optional)

In short

SHA-256 condenses any amount of data into 256 bits - 64 hex characters. The same input always yields the same checksum, and a single flipped bit yields a completely different one.

What for	Verifying downloads, proving an unmodified transfer, spotting duplicates, addressing content (Git, container images, IPFS).
Cross-check	Locally, sha256sum file (Linux) or shasum -a 256 file (macOS) produces exactly the same value.
Checking a list	sha256sum -c SHA256SUMS verifies a whole list at once - that is exactly the format the copy button above produces.
Not for passwords	SHA-256 is a poor fit for passwords precisely because it is fast. Use Argon2, scrypt or bcrypt instead.
Not encryption	A hash is a one-way street: the content cannot be computed back from the checksum. For short or guessable inputs that is no protection though - rainbow tables are precomputed tables holding ready-to-look-up checksums for billions of common passwords and words. A hit there reveals the input without reversing anything. A random salt per entry defends against this: it renders every precomputed table worthless.