Regular expression
/^data:[\w/+.-]+;base64,[A-Za-z0-9+/=]+$/Pattern breakdown
| Part | Meaning |
|---|---|
Anchor or context | Use anchors when you need whole-string validation. |
Main token | The core token sequence describes the accepted text shape. |
Character class | Character classes limit which characters are valid. |
Quantifier | Quantifiers control how many characters or groups are accepted. |
Flags | Use language-specific flags such as i, m, or u only when needed. |
Should match
data:image/png;base64,AAAA
Should not match
image/pngnot matching sampledata:image/png;base64,AAAA invalidimage/pngdata:image/png;base64,AAAA
Test cases
| Input | Expected | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
data:image/png;base64,AAAA | Match | Representative valid input for this pattern. |
image/png | No match | Common invalid or boundary input. |
(empty string) | No match | Common invalid or boundary input. |
not matching sample | No match | Common invalid or boundary input. |
data:image/png;base64,AAAA invalid | No match | Common invalid or boundary input. |
image/pngdata:image/png;base64,AAAA | No match | Common invalid or boundary input. |
JavaScript
const re = /^data:[\w/+.-]+;base64,[A-Za-z0-9+/=]+$/;
re.test(input);Python
import re
bool(re.search(r"^data:[\w/+.-]+;base64,[A-Za-z0-9+/=]+$", text))PHP
$ok = preg_match('/^data:[\w\/+.-]+;base64,[A-Za-z0-9+\/=]+$/', $value) === 1;Java
Pattern pattern = Pattern.compile("^data:[\\w/+.-]+;base64,[A-Za-z0-9+/=]+$");
pattern.matcher(value).find();Go
re := regexp.MustCompile(`^data:[\w/+.-]+;base64,[A-Za-z0-9+/=]+$`)
ok := re.MatchString(value)Notes and production use
Data URI regex is useful as a practical starting point. Test it against your real input, avoid using it as the only security control, and prefer a parser when the format has complex grammar.
Performance tip: avoid running complex regular expressions repeatedly on very large untrusted strings without limits. Prefer anchored validation patterns, cap input length before matching, and use a parser when the target format has nested grammar.