OpenSSL CSR & Certificate Decoder - Free Online Parser
An OpenSSL CSR decoder is a tool that parses and inspects the Certificate Signing Requests (CSRs) encoded in PEM or DER format. Our tool will extract and display the subject distinguished name (CN, O, OU, L, ST, C), public key algorithm and size, signature algorithm, requested Subject Alternative Names (SANs), key usage extensions, and other embedded attributes, making it easy to verify CSR contents before submission to a Certificate Authority.
Please Note: Encryption Consulting LLC does not possess, store, or retain any data entered into this decoder. All inputs, including PEM certificates or Base64-encoded DER, are used solely for decoding purposes and are not saved.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about decoding your CSR files. Can't find the answer you're looking for? Send us an email
Open the OpenSSL Decoder tool and follow the three steps:
- Paste or Upload Your CSR File Paste the PEM-encoded CSR directly, or upload a
.cer,.crt,.pem, or.derfile. Base64-encoded DER is also accepted. - Process The tool parses the structure and extracts all embedded fields.
- View the Output Decoded fields are displayed in human-readable format, letting you verify subject details, public key, and extensions before submitting to a Certificate Authority (CA).
To generate a CSR, you can use our CSR Generator Tool. This utility simplifies the entire process of creating a CSR while ensuring compliance with relevant standards.
Both tools decode binary-encoded certificate data, but serve different purposes.
- An ASN.1 decoder is a general-purpose tool for inspecting any ASN.1-encoded structure as it exposes the raw DER/BER hierarchy of tags, lengths, and values. It is the right choice when you need to audit encoding correctness, debug custom ASN.1 schemas, or inspect non-certificate structures.
- An OpenSSL CSR Decoder is purpose-built for X.509 Certificate Signing Requests. It interprets the ASN.1 structure internally and maps the output to certificate-specific fields such as CN, SANs, key algorithm, and requested extensions, presenting them in a labeled, actionable format. It is the right choice when you need to verify CSR contents before CA submission, without manually interpreting raw byte sequences.
The CSR decoder output is organized mainly into five key sections, each providing important details about the certificate request.
- Subject Fields This section identifies the entity requesting the certificate. It includes the Common Name (CN), which is the domain name (e.g., www.example.com), along with organization details such as Organization (O), Organizational Unit (OU), Locality (L), State (ST), and Country (C) using ISO codes.
- Public Key This section displays the cryptographic properties of the public key. It specifies the key algorithm, such as RSA or ECC. For RSA keys, it shows the key size (for example, 2048 or 4096 bits). For ECC keys, it specifies the elliptic curve used, such as P-256, P-384, or P-521, which defines the key’s mathematical parameters and security level.
- Signature Algorithm This section specifies the algorithm used to sign the CSR, combining hashing and encryption methods (e.g., ecdsa-with-SHA384).
- Extensions This section lists additional certificate capabilities, including Key Usage (allowed operations), Extended Key Usage (specific purposes like TLS authentication), and Subject Alternative Names (SANs) for extra domains or IP addresses.
- Fingerprints & CSR Checks This section includes fingerprints such as SHA-256 (primary), SHA-1 (legacy), and MD5 (for compatibility). It also validates the CSR by checking the signature, confirming key details, and flagging weak or deprecated hashing algorithms.
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