JSON to YAML

YAML is a human-friendly data format that mirrors the same structure as JSON - objects, lists, numbers, strings - but with indentation instead of curly braces. It is the standard for configuration files (Docker Compose, Kubernetes, CI pipelines, GitHub Actions) and far nicer to read and edit than JSON.

This tool parses your JSON entirely locally in your browser and outputs structure-equivalent YAML (js-yaml, pure JavaScript). Invalid JSON is rejected with a clear error instead of crashing. The process is lossless: YAML back to JSON yields the same structure. Nothing is uploaded.

In practice you reach for this when a programming interface hands you a compact response but you want to store those settings as a hand-maintained configuration. The indented notation shows nesting at a glance and eases later edits as well as comparing two versions in version control. Long strings and special characters are quoted correctly so the result stays valid without rework.

Specifications

In 3 steps

1. Drop or pick your JSON file.
2. The tool converts to YAML locally.
3. Download the YAML file.

Limitations: The JSON must be valid (otherwise a clear error). JSON has no comments, so none can be carried into the YAML. Very deep or large structures need memory. Anchors/references are deliberately not emitted (more readable).

FAQ

Related tools

YAML to JSON · XML to JSON · JSON to XML · XML to YAML · JSON to TOML · GeoJSON to KML