Best Regular Expression Testers in 2026
Updated
In short: regex101 is ranked #1 of 23 as of 4 October 2026, ahead of RegexPilot and RegexCraft. The best-ranked option with a free plan is RegexPilot. The lowest first paid tier on this page is regex101 at €4.99/mo.
A regular expression tester lets you try patterns and inspect how they behave against text. Compare supported regex flavors, pattern explanation and step-through debugging to see how each tool can help you understand a match. Saved patterns and code generation matter if you want to keep or reuse your work. Available platforms, free-plan availability and “Paid from” details add practical context to the comparison. regex101, RegexPilot and RegexCraft are among the options shown, alongside Debuggex and The Regex Coach. Consider whether you need to test, explain, debug or preserve patterns, and compare those needs with the features and platforms listed.
23 regular expression testers ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
23ranked
7free plans on this page
€4.99/molowest paid tier
4 Oct 2026last checked
Input list Regular Expression Testers 23 channels on this page · 108 of 184 spec lines stated by the makers
Ch Tool Free planPaid fromRegex flavorsPattern explanationStep-through debuggerCode generationSaved patternsAvailable platforms Spec sheet Score
01 regex101 Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsPCRE2 (PHP), JavaScript, Python, Golang, Java, .NET, Rust, POSIX ERE, POSIX BRE, PCRE (Legacy)Pattern explanationYesStep-through debuggerYesCode generationYesSaved patternsYesAvailable platformsnot stated 6/8spec lines stated 7.4
02 RegexPilot Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsJavaScript, TypeScript, Python, Java, C#, PHP, Ruby, Go, Perl, Rust, Scala, Kotlin, Groovy, Clojure, Elixir, R, Dart, Swift, MySQL, PostgreSQL, POSIX shellPattern explanationYesStep-through debuggerNoCode generationYesSaved patternsYesAvailable platformsnot stated 6/8spec lines stated 7.4
03 RegexCraft Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavors.NET, PCRE2, JavaScript, TypeScript, PHP, Python, Java, Ruby, Go, Rust, Perl, Kotlin, SwiftPattern explanationYesStep-through debuggerYesCode generationYesSaved patternsYesAvailable platformsdesktop 7/8spec lines stated 7.2
04 Debuggex Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsJavaScript, Python, PCREPattern explanationYesStep-through debuggerYesCode generationYesSaved patternsYesAvailable platformsweb 7/8spec lines stated 6.9
05 The Regex Coach Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsPerl-compatiblePattern explanationYesStep-through debuggerYesCode generationNoSaved patternsYesAvailable platformsnot stated 6/8spec lines stated 6.9
06 RegEx Visualizer & Explainer Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsJavaScript RegExpPattern explanationYesStep-through debuggerYesCode generationNoSaved patternsYesAvailable platformsweb 7/8spec lines stated 6.7
07 RegexBuddy Free planNoPaid fromnot statedRegex flavors94 flavors, including PCRE, PCRE2, .NET, JavaScript, Java, Perl, PHP, Python, Ruby, Boost, RE2, ICU, and POSIX BRE/EREPattern explanationYesStep-through debuggerYesCode generationYesSaved patternsYesAvailable platformsdesktop 7/8spec lines stated 6.6
08 RegexStudio Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsJavaScript, PCRE, Python, Java, Go, .NET, Rust, RubyPattern explanationYesStep-through debuggerYesCode generationYesSaved patternsnot statedAvailable platformsweb 6/8spec lines stated 6.6
09 RegexRegex Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsJavaScript RegExp, Python re, PHP PCRE2, Java Pattern/Matcher, .NET Regex, PerlPattern explanationYesStep-through debuggernot statedCode generationYesSaved patternsYesAvailable platformsweb 6/8spec lines stated 6.4
10 Regexo Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsJavaPattern explanationnot statedStep-through debuggernot statedCode generationnot statedSaved patternsYesAvailable platformsdesktop 3/8spec lines stated 5.9
11 AppTools Regex Tester Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsJavaScript, PCRE (PHP), Python, GoPattern explanationYesStep-through debuggerYesCode generationnot statedSaved patternsnot statedAvailable platformsweb 5/8spec lines stated 5.8
12 Regex Hero Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavors.NETPattern explanationnot statedStep-through debuggernot statedCode generationYesSaved patternsnot statedAvailable platformsnot stated 3/8spec lines stated 5.8
13 RegExr Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsJavaScript, PHP/PCREPattern explanationYesStep-through debuggernot statedCode generationnot statedSaved patternsYesAvailable platformsweb 5/8spec lines stated 5.8
14 Regulex Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsJavaScript/ECMAScriptPattern explanationNoStep-through debuggerNoCode generationNoSaved patternsNoAvailable platformsweb 6/8spec lines stated 5.8
15 SK Play Labs Regex Tester Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsJavaScriptPattern explanationYesStep-through debuggernot statedCode generationnot statedSaved patternsnot statedAvailable platformsweb 4/8spec lines stated 5.8
16 Regex Playground Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsnot statedPattern explanationnot statedStep-through debuggernot statedCode generationnot statedSaved patternsnot statedAvailable platformsweb 2/8spec lines stated 5.7
17 Regex Shuttle Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsJavaScript (native RegExp engine)Pattern explanationYesStep-through debuggernot statedCode generationnot statedSaved patternsnot statedAvailable platformsweb 4/8spec lines stated 5.7
18 RegEx Tester Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavors.NET, Node.js, Python, JavaPattern explanationnot statedStep-through debuggernot statedCode generationnot statedSaved patternsnot statedAvailable platformsweb 3/8spec lines stated 5.6
19 Regex Tester Pro Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsJavaScript, Python, Go, Java, PCRE, .NETPattern explanationYesStep-through debuggernot statedCode generationYesSaved patternsYesAvailable platformsnot stated 5/8spec lines stated 5.6
20 RegexAssistant Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsBoost, Scintilla, POSIX, STD Regex, Perl, SEDPattern explanationYesStep-through debuggernot statedCode generationnot statedSaved patternsnot statedAvailable platformsdesktop 3/8spec lines stated 5.6
21 RegexPlanet Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsYour Browser, Bun, Deno, Erlang, Go, Haskell, Java, MySQL, .NET, Node.js, Perl, PHP, PostgreSQL, Python, Ruby, Rust, Swift, Tcl, XRegExpPattern explanationnot statedStep-through debuggernot statedCode generationnot statedSaved patternsnot statedAvailable platformsweb 3/8spec lines stated 5.6
22 txtnode Regex Tester Free planYesPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsJavaScriptPattern explanationnot statedStep-through debuggernot statedCode generationnot statedSaved patternsnot statedAvailable platformsweb 3/8spec lines stated 5.6
23 Retest Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedRegex flavorsnot statedPattern explanationnot statedStep-through debuggernot statedCode generationnot statedSaved patternsnot statedAvailable platformsdesktop 1/8spec lines stated 5.2
Compare all 23 in a table
| # | Tool | Score | Free plan | From | Free plan | Paid from | Regex flavors | Pattern explanation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | regex101 | 7.4 | Free plan | €4.99/mo | Yes | — | PCRE2 (PHP), JavaScript, Python, Golang, Java, .NET, Rust, POSIX ERE, POSIX BRE, PCRE (Legacy) | Yes |
| 2 | RegexPilot | 7.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | JavaScript, TypeScript, Python, Java, C#, PHP, Ruby, Go, Perl, Rust, Scala, Kotlin, Groovy, Clojure, Elixir, R, Dart, Swift, MySQL, PostgreSQL, POSIX shell | Yes |
| 3 | RegexCraft | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | .NET, PCRE2, JavaScript, TypeScript, PHP, Python, Java, Ruby, Go, Rust, Perl, Kotlin, Swift | Yes |
| 4 | Debuggex | 6.9 | Free plan | $5/mo | Yes | — | JavaScript, Python, PCRE | Yes |
| 5 | The Regex Coach | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Perl-compatible | Yes |
| 6 | RegEx Visualizer & Explainer | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | JavaScript RegExp | Yes |
| 7 | RegexBuddy | 6.6 | No | — | No | — | 94 flavors, including PCRE, PCRE2, .NET, JavaScript, Java, Perl, PHP, Python, Ruby, Boost, RE2, ICU, and POSIX BRE/ERE | Yes |
| 8 | RegexStudio | 6.6 | No | — | Yes | — | JavaScript, PCRE, Python, Java, Go, .NET, Rust, Ruby | Yes |
| 9 | RegexRegex | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | JavaScript RegExp, Python re, PHP PCRE2, Java Pattern/Matcher, .NET Regex, Perl | Yes |
| 10 | Regexo | 5.9 | No | — | — | — | Java | — |
| 11 | AppTools Regex Tester | 5.8 | No | — | Yes | — | JavaScript, PCRE (PHP), Python, Go | Yes |
| 12 | Regex Hero | 5.8 | No | — | Yes | — | .NET | — |
| 13 | RegExr | 5.8 | No | — | Yes | — | JavaScript, PHP/PCRE | Yes |
| 14 | Regulex | 5.8 | No | — | — | — | JavaScript/ECMAScript | No |
| 15 | SK Play Labs Regex Tester | 5.8 | No | — | Yes | — | JavaScript | Yes |
| 16 | Regex Playground | 5.7 | No | — | Yes | — | — | — |
| 17 | Regex Shuttle | 5.7 | No | — | Yes | — | JavaScript (native RegExp engine) | Yes |
| 18 | RegEx Tester | 5.6 | No | — | Yes | — | .NET, Node.js, Python, Java | — |
| 19 | Regex Tester Pro | 5.6 | No | — | Yes | — | JavaScript, Python, Go, Java, PCRE, .NET | Yes |
| 20 | RegexAssistant | 5.6 | No | — | — | — | Boost, Scintilla, POSIX, STD Regex, Perl, SED | Yes |
| 21 | RegexPlanet | 5.6 | No | — | Yes | — | Your Browser, Bun, Deno, Erlang, Go, Haskell, Java, MySQL, .NET, Node.js, Perl, PHP, PostgreSQL, Python, Ruby, Rust, Swift, Tcl, XRegExp | — |
| 22 | txtnode Regex Tester | 5.6 | No | — | Yes | — | JavaScript | — |
| 23 | Retest | 5.2 | No | — | — | — | — | — |
Is your tool on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored. They are labelled, and the editorial order and scores never change for payment.
Questions about this list
Which regular expression tester is ranked first on Specifiction?
regex101 is ranked #1 of 23 with a score of 7.4. RegexPilot is second and RegexCraft third.
How many of these have a free plan?
7 of the 23 on this page publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
Which is the cheapest paid option?
On this page, regex101 has the lowest first paid tier we found: €4.99/mo.
How is this list ranked?
Ranked on what each maker publishes, the fullest spec sheet first: how deeply the product is documented, the platforms it runs on, a free tier or trial to test it, and its standing. Paid placements never change a rank.
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