How do I match an email address with regex?

A practical pattern is ^[\w.-]+@[\w.-]+\.\w{2,}$ — it matches typical addresses without trying to cover every RFC edge case. Search "email" in the cheat sheet above for the token-by-token breakdown.

What is the difference between * and + in regex?

* means "zero or more" of the previous token (the match can be empty), while + means "one or more" (at least one is required). So \d* matches an empty string but \d+ requires at least one digit.

How do I match the start or end of a string?

Use ^ for the start and $ for the end. ^cat matches strings beginning with "cat"; cat$ matches strings ending with "cat"; ^cat$ matches only the exact string "cat".

What are regex capture groups?

Parentheses ( ) group part of a pattern and "capture" what they match so you can reuse it — in code as match[1], or inside the pattern itself as \1. Non-capturing groups (?: ) group without capturing.

Is there a searchable regex reference?

Yes — the tool above. Describe what you want to match in plain English ("phone number", "not a digit", "optional text") and it returns the right tokens with explanations and copy-ready examples.

Regex Cheat Sheet — Search Regex Patterns by Task

What is Regex cheat sheet?

Regex Cheat Sheet — Free regex cheat sheet — search 40+ regex tokens by task ("match email", "digits only"). Plain-English explanations with examples.

A hand-curated reference of 40 regular-expression tokens with original plain-English descriptions and examples, covering the syntax shared by JavaScript, Python, PHP, and most other regex flavors. Search is a token-based fuzzy match over the pattern, description, and task keywords — all scoring runs client-side in your browser. Flavor-specific quirks (e.g. lookbehind support) are noted where they matter.

Why use this regex cheat sheet?

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Built for regex cheat sheet

Free regex cheat sheet — search 40+ regex tokens by task ("match email", "digits only"). Plain-English explanations with examples.

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Transparent & honest

Covers syntax shared by JavaScript/Python/PHP-style regex; exotic flavors (POSIX, .NET balancing groups) are out of scope.

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Private by design

Everything runs in your browser. Your inputs never leave your device.

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Works everywhere

Fully responsive — perfect on desktop, tablet, and mobile. No app needed.

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Regularly updated

Regularly maintained and reviewed to ensure accuracy.

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Free forever

No accounts, no limits, no watermarks. Use Regex Cheat Sheet as much as you need.

How to use Regex Cheat Sheet

1Type what you want to match in plain words — e.g. "email address" or "exactly 5 digits".
2Run the tool to search 40+ regex tokens, grouped into anchors, quantifiers, groups, character classes, and flags.
3Read each match: the token, a plain-English explanation, and a copy-ready example.
4Paste the example into your code or a regex tester and adapt it to your input.
5Type "all" to browse the complete reference grouped by topic.

What can you do with Regex Cheat Sheet?

Regex cheat sheet — Free regex cheat sheet — search 40+ regex tokens by task ("match email", "digits only").
Regular expression reference — Free regex cheat sheet — search 40+ regex tokens by task ("match email", "digits only").
Regex syntax guide — Free regex cheat sheet — search 40+ regex tokens by task ("match email", "digits only").
Regex patterns list — Free regex cheat sheet — search 40+ regex tokens by task ("match email", "digits only").

Good to know

Covers syntax shared by JavaScript/Python/PHP-style regex; exotic flavors (POSIX, .NET balancing groups) are out of scope.
Email/URL "validation" patterns are practical approximations, not RFC-complete — for critical validation, verify in code too.
Lookbehind ((?<= )) is unsupported in older JavaScript engines — noted per token where relevant.

How it works

A hand-curated reference of 40 regular-expression tokens with original plain-English descriptions and examples, covering the syntax shared by JavaScript, Python, PHP, and most other regex flavors. Search is a token-based fuzzy match over the pattern, description, and task keywords — all scoring runs client-side in your browser. Flavor-specific quirks (e.g. lookbehind support) are noted where they matter.

Examples

Match an email-ish string

Status: ok — top match: a practical email pattern with an explanation of what each part does.

Exactly five digits

Status: ok — top match: ^\d{5}$ with anchors explained (start/end of string).

Browse everything

Status: ok — returns the full 40-token reference grouped by category.

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