Online JSON Formatter — Prettify with Custom Indentation

Format minified or messy JSON with readable indentation. Choose 2 or 4 spaces or tabs — all processing stays local in your browser.

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JSON formatter — prettify playbook
Turn minified or messy JSON into readable, indented output. Choose 2 or 4 spaces or tabs — formatting runs locally with no uploads.

Developer notes

• Input is validated before formatting — fix syntax errors first (or use the JSON validator tool). • Indent size and character (spaces vs tabs) apply on each Format action. • Data fidelity is preserved: numbers, key order and string contents stay identical. • For byte reduction, use the JSON minifier — this page targets readability, not compression. • The minify-family beautify JSON page shares the same editor UX as CSS/HTML — pick whichever entry point fits your navigation.

Formatting options

Indent size
Number of spaces per indentation level when using spaces (ignored for tabs).
Indent style
Use spaces or a tab character for each indentation level.
Sort keys
Off by default (preserves key order). On recursively sorts object keys for stable diffs; array order is unchanged. For advanced sorting options, use <a href="/en/json-sort">JSON Sort</a>.

When teams pick this route

• Review minified API logs or webhook payloads during incident response. • Normalize fixtures before opening pull requests. • Prepare readable snippets for documentation or Slack threads. • Inspect converter output before exporting to YAML or CSV.

Worked examples

Minified log line

Sample input

{"order":{"id":"ord_8f2a","status":"paid","customer":{"id":"cus_42","name":"Ada Lovelace","email":"[email protected]"},"line_items":[{"sku":"WB-001","qty":2,"price":24.99},{"sku":"WB-003","qty":1,"price":89.0}],"total":138.98}}

Formatted output

{ "order": { "id": "ord_8f2a", "status": "paid", "customer": { "id": "cus_42", "name": "Ada Lovelace", "email": "[email protected]" }, "line_items": [ { "sku": "WB-001", "qty": 2, "price": 24.99 }, { "sku": "WB-003", "qty": 1, "price": 89 } ], "total": 138.98 } }

Nested config with tabs

Sample input

{"metrics":{"cpu":"450m","memory":"512Mi","replicas":3}}

Formatted output

{ "metrics": { "cpu": "450m", "memory": "512Mi", "replicas": 3 } }

Navigate related JSON tools

Browse the JSON tools hub for the full cluster. Validate first with the JSON validator, spot regressions using JSON diff, or explore keys in the JSON tree viewer. Tighten payloads via our JSON minifier or export through JSON → XML.

JSON formatter FAQ

Beautify without changing data

Does formatting change values?

No — only whitespace and indentation change. Parsed data remains identical.

Difference vs JSON minifier?

The minifier removes whitespace to shrink file size. This formatter adds indentation for human review.

Key order?

Insertion order from the parser is preserved in the formatted output.

Server uploads?

No — formatting executes locally in your browser.

Can I sort keys?

This formatter includes a basic Sort keys toggle for quick canonicalization. For full control (natural/numeric order, array sorting, depth limits), use the dedicated JSON Sort tool.

JSON Tools

Validate, format, diff and explore JSON payloads — complementary to minifiers and converters.

Explore other tool categories

Minify

Shrink code and assets for production — minify JavaScript, CSS, HTML, JSON and XML before gzip or CDN deploy.

Beautify

Make code readable with consistent indentation — beautify JavaScript, CSS, TypeScript, SCSS, LESS, Markdown, GraphQL, SQL, YAML and more in your browser.

Unminify

Expand minified or compressed code — unminify JavaScript, CSS, TypeScript, SCSS, LESS, SQL, YAML and other formats when debugging or reviewing.

Conversion

Transform data between JSON, YAML, XML and CSV locally — no server uploads.

CSS preprocessors

Compile SCSS or LESS to standard CSS in the browser — pair with beautify or minify for a full stylesheet workflow.

SVG Tools

Preview, optimize with SVGO, export Data URI, resize, beautify, convert to JSX and validate SVG — all in your browser.

DevOps & Infra

Terraform HCL format/validate/minify, Dockerfile format & lint, Docker Compose and .env validation.

CI/CD

GitHub Actions and GitLab CI — format YAML and check workflow/job structure in your browser.

Logs & observability

Line-oriented JSON/NDJSON and Nginx/Apache access logs — format, filter, validate, and CSV/TSV.

Kubernetes

Multi-doc manifests, structural validate, Ingress/Deployment starters, and Helm values formatting.

Networking / IP

CIDR, subnets, and IPv4/IPv6 helpers — in your browser.

Security & tokens

JWKS, X.509 certificates, and secrets scan — browser-local.

API & schemas

OpenAPI tools to format, validate, and lint your specs.

Encoding

Encode or decode Base64, URL components and HTML entities — client-side only.

Developer utilities

Timestamps, UUID, ULID, Nanoid, cron, passwords, regex, slugify, number bases, case, text diff, and chmod — all client-side.

Text & Markdown

Count words, build Markdown TOCs, and clean line lists — all in your browser.

AI & LLM

Token counting, pricing estimates, and context-window fit — 100% browser-local.

Serialization

Serialize and deserialize PHP data structures beside JSON workflows.