User Guide¶

kotlin-base58 encodes bytes with the Bitcoin Base58 alphabet: 123456789ABCDEFGHJKLMNPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijkmnopqrstuvwxyz.

The alphabet omits 0, O, I, and l, which makes encoded values easier to read and copy in human-facing identifiers.

Bytes¶

Use Base58.encode and Base58.decode for arbitrary binary payloads:

import one.wabbit.base58.Base58

val bytes = byteArrayOf(0, 0, 1, 2, 3)
val encoded = Base58.encode(bytes)
val decoded = Base58.decode(encoded)

check(decoded.contentEquals(bytes))

Leading zero bytes are preserved as leading 1 characters.

Typed Values¶

The typed helpers serialize fixed-width binary values before Base58 encoding:

import one.wabbit.base58.Base58

val encoded = Base58.encodeInt(42)

check(encoded == "111j")
check(Base58.decodeInt(encoded) == 42)

These helpers are not compact numeric encoders. decodeInt("j") fails because "j" decodes to a single byte, not the four bytes required for an Int.

UUIDs¶

UUIDs are encoded as 16 bytes: most significant bits followed by least significant bits, each in big-endian order.

import one.wabbit.base58.Base58
import kotlin.uuid.ExperimentalUuidApi
import kotlin.uuid.Uuid

@OptIn(ExperimentalUuidApi::class)
fun example() {
    val id = Uuid.parse("123e4567-e89b-12d3-a456-426614174000")
    val encoded = Base58.encodeUuid(id)

    check(Base58.decodeUuid(encoded) == id)
}

Because kotlin.uuid.Uuid is experimental, Kotlin call sites may need the same opt-in annotation.

Plain Base58¶

This library does not add checksums or version bytes. If a protocol expects Base58Check or another checksum-bearing format, apply that framing outside this library before calling Base58.encode.