Developer tools
JSON Formatting Guide for APIs, Config Files, and Debugging
Understand JSON formatting, minifying, validation, common syntax errors, and when to use a browser-local formatter.
JSON Formatter
Validate, format, and minify JSON data.
What formatting does
JSON formatting adds indentation and line breaks so nested objects and arrays are easier to read. It does not change the data values when the JSON is valid.
Minifying does the opposite: it removes unnecessary whitespace to make the JSON smaller for storage, logs, or transmission.
Common JSON errors
Frequent mistakes include trailing commas, missing quotes around property names, single quotes instead of double quotes, and unescaped characters inside strings.
A formatter that parses JSON first can help catch these errors before you paste data into an API client or configuration file.
Privacy for pasted data
Browser-local formatting is useful for snippets, examples, and non-sensitive API data. For secrets, tokens, customer data, or private configuration, be careful with any web tool and use the minimum data required.
If you need to inspect a JWT, remember that decoding is not the same as verifying a signature.
FAQ
Does formatting JSON change the data?
Valid formatting should preserve values and structure while changing whitespace.
What is minified JSON?
Minified JSON removes unnecessary spaces and line breaks.
Can a formatter fix invalid JSON automatically?
Usually no. It can identify that parsing failed, but you still need to correct the syntax.