How to use the Windows Path Converter
- Paste a path in any format — the format is detected automatically.
- Read the path in every other format.
- Copy the one you need; paste several lines to convert them all.
One file, many spellings
- Windows —
C:\Users\me\file.txt, backslashes and a drive letter. - WSL — Windows drives are mounted under
/mnt:/mnt/c/Users/me/file.txt. Inside WSL,wslpathdoes the same conversion. - Git Bash / MSYS2 —
/c/Users/me/file.txt. - Cygwin —
/cygdrive/c/Users/me/file.txt. - file URL —
file:///C:/Users/me/file.txt, with spaces encoded as%20. - Escaped — backslashes doubled for JSON, C#, Java and JavaScript strings (
C:\\Users\\me), or a Python raw stringr"C:\Users\me".
Spaces and special characters
Paths with spaces need quotes in shells — cd "/mnt/c/Program Files" — or escaped spaces (Program\ Files) in Bash. The converter shows a quoted version ready for the terminal.
Network shares
UNC paths such as \\server\share\folder become //server/share/folder with forward slashes and file://server/share/folder as a URL. WSL doesn’t mount network shares automatically; map the share to a drive letter or mount it with mount -t drvfs.
Tools that pair well with the Windows Path Converter
- Line Ending Converter — See which line endings a file uses and convert them — Windows CRLF to Unix LF or back — for pasted text or a whole batch of files, with trailing-space and tab cleanup on the side.
- URL Encode / Decode — Percent-encode text for safe use in URLs, decode encoded strings back to readable text, and break any URL down into its parts and query parameters.
- Chmod Calculator — Tick read, write and execute for owner, group and others — or type 755, rwxr-xr-x or u=rwx,g=rx,o=rx.
- JSON Escape & Unescape — Make any text safe to paste into a JSON string — quotes, backslashes, newlines and Unicode — or turn an escaped string back into readable text or JSON.
Frequently asked questions
How do I convert a Windows path to a WSL path?
Replace the drive letter with /mnt/ and the lowercase letter, and backslashes with slashes: C:\Users\me becomes /mnt/c/Users/me. Inside WSL,
wslpath 'C:\Users\me' does it too.Why do I need double backslashes in code?
In JSON, C#, Java and JavaScript strings a backslash starts an escape sequence (\n, \t), so a literal backslash is written as \\. Forward slashes also work in most Windows APIs.
Does Windows accept forward slashes?
Most Windows programs and APIs accept C:/Users/me, including PowerShell, Node.js, Python and Git. The classic cmd.exe shell is the main exception for some commands.
Can I install Windows Path Converter as a web app and use it offline?
Yes. Windows Path Converter is an installable web app (PWA) — installed from your browser, not downloaded from an app store. Click Install app at the top of this page in Chrome or Edge (Windows, macOS, Linux, ChromeOS) or on Android, use Share → Add to Home Screen on iPhone and iPad, or File → Add to Dock in Safari 17+ on a Mac. It then opens in its own window with its own icon, and because it runs entirely in your browser it keeps working offline. Firefox on desktop can’t install web apps. How installing works.