About MD5, SHA-1, SHA-256 & SHA-512 — When and Why to Use Each

MD5 is a widely-known hashing function that produces a 128-bit (32-hex-character) fingerprint. It's very fast and ideal for checksums, file integrity verification, and non-security-critical uses. However, MD5 is no longer considered secure against collision attacks for cryptographic authentication.

SHA-1 is stronger than MD5 but also deprecated for secure signature verification — collisions have been demonstrated. Use SHA-1 only for legacy compatibility and non-critical checksums where collision resistance is not required.

SHA-256 and SHA-512 are part of the SHA-2 family and are currently recommended for cryptographic needs: password hashing (with salt and a slow KDF), digital signatures, secure checksums, and certificate fingerprints. SHA-256 balances security and efficiency for most web uses; SHA-512 provides extra security where needed.

This tool generates all these hashes instantly and locally in your browser. For password storage or authentication, please combine hashing with a secure algorithm like Argon2 or bcrypt and always use salts.

Common Uses

File and download verification, detecting accidental corruption, cache-busting fingerprints, non-sensitive content comparison, developer testing, learning about hashing, and quick checks when working offline.

Privacy & Performance

All processing is done using local JavaScript and the Web Crypto API — your input never leaves your device. The SHA algorithms use the fast native crypto.subtle API where available; MD5 is computed with a local JS routine for compatibility.

How to Use

Type or paste the text in the box above. Hash outputs update as you type. Use copy buttons to quickly copy the fingerprint. Use download buttons to save the fingerprint as a small .txt file.