Compare two hashes — check a checksum matches, ignoring case and spaces

How to use the hash comparator

1. Paste the published or trusted value into Expected hash.
2. Paste the value you calculated into Actual hash.
3. Read Result: Match or No match. The panel also shows both lengths, the number of Differing characters, and the Likely algorithm (by length).
4. If they do not match, check the lengths first, then the algorithm, then the data.

What it does and when to use it

Eyeballing two 64-character strings is error-prone, and checksums are often printed in different styles: uppercase with spaces in one place, lowercase in another, or with colons between byte pairs. This tool removes those differences so you only see real ones.

Typical uses are confirming that an ISO image or installer matches the SHA-256 on the vendor’s download page, checking a Subresource Integrity value, or comparing a hash from a log with one in a database. If you have the file but not its hash yet, compute it first with the file hash calculator, which also has its own expected-checksum box. For text, use the SHA-256 generator. If you are unsure what kind of hash you are holding, the hash identifier lists the candidates.

How it works

Each value is trimmed. A short label followed by : or = is dropped when 8 or more hex digits come after it, grouped or not. All spaces and colons are then removed. If what remains is pure hex, it is lower-cased, unless it was a single run without spaces or colons that mixes upper and lower case; that is treated as Base64 and kept as it is.

The two cleaned strings are compared position by position over the full length of the longer one. Every position where the characters differ adds one to Differing characters. A difference in length also makes the result No match. The likely algorithm is the first candidate for that hex length, the same guess the identifier makes, so a 64-digit value is shown as SHA-256 even though SHA3-256 and BLAKE3 have the same length.

Worked examples

Same SHA-256, different style. The default values are the SHA-256 of empty input, one lowercase and one in uppercase groups of eight. Result: Match, 64 characters each, likely SHA-256.

One digit off. 900150983cd24fb0d6963f7d28e17f72 against …7f73 gives No match with Differing characters: 1, likely MD5. A single change in the data would normally alter about half of the digits, so one differing digit points to a copying mistake rather than a different file.

Label pasted by accident. SHA256: e3b0c442…7852b855 against the bare value is a Match; the label is stripped.

Limits and tips

• The tool compares strings. It does not hash anything, so both values must come from the same algorithm.
• A match proves the data is unchanged only if the expected value came from a source you trust, ideally over HTTPS or with a signature.
• Base64 hashes are compared exactly after spaces and colons are removed.
• Nothing you paste leaves the browser.