JSON Pretty Print, also known as JSON beautification or formatting, is a process of presenting JSON data in a more human-readable and structured format.
JSON Pretty Print is a technique used to enhance the readability of JSON data by adding indentation, line breaks, and whitespace, making it easier for humans to understand and work with.
When JSON data is generated by machines or APIs, it is often compacted into a single line without any formatting. While this format is efficient for transmission and storage, it can be challenging for humans to parse and interpret.
JSON Pretty Print tools take compacted JSON input and format it in a more visually appealing way. This typically involves:
- Adding indentation to represent nested objects and arrays hierarchically.
- Inserting line breaks to separate different elements of the JSON structure.
- Aligning key-value pairs for improved readability.
For example, given the compacted JSON:
{"name":"John","age":30,"address":{"street":"123 Main St","city":"Cloud Tuned Town","zipcode":"12345"}}
A JSON Pretty Print tool would format it as:
{
"name": "John",
"age": 30,
"address": {
"street": "123 Main St",
"city": "Cloud Tuned Town",
"zipcode": "12345"
}
}
JSON Pretty Print is particularly useful for debugging, troubleshooting, and manual inspection of JSON data. It helps developers and data analysts quickly grasp the structure and contents of JSON documents, facilitating more efficient analysis and manipulation.
Numerous JSON Pretty Print tools are available, including online converters, command-line utilities, text editors with built-in JSON formatting features, and programming libraries for various programming languages. These tools often provide options for customizing the formatting style, such as adjusting indentation width or sorting keys alphabetically.
One such tool can be found following this link. Simply copy the compacted JSON and paste it into the text area on the left and click on the Make Pretty button, the prettified JSON will be rendered on the text area on the right hand side.