YAML to JSON

Parse YAML into structured JSON

YAML to JSON reads a YAML document with a parser and formats the resulting value as JSON with two-space indentation. It handles the common mapping and sequence shapes used in configuration files, while keeping the output as a normal JSON document that other tools can inspect. Paste YAML, use the sample, or drop a .yaml or .yml file into the input area.

This page performs a real parse rather than replacing indentation with braces. That matters for quoted strings, multiline values, nested arrays, and escaped characters. If you need to go back to YAML after editing the result, use JSON to YAML.

YAML features and data types

YAML can include comments, anchors, aliases, quoted and unquoted scalars, and several ways to write a multiline value. The parser turns the supported source into data before JSON is written. Comments are authoring notes, not JSON values, so they do not appear in the output. Anchors and aliases can also change shape when they become ordinary JSON values.

Be deliberate with unquoted values. YAML has scalar rules that may interpret a word as a boolean, a number, null, or another special value. Quote identifiers, version strings, and values with leading zeros when they must remain text. The output is syntactically valid JSON, but it does not validate your application's required fields.

Invalid input and parser boundaries

A missing colon, inconsistent indentation, duplicate key, or malformed quoted value can make YAML invalid. The page shows the parser error and clears the old output so an earlier successful result is not mistaken for the current conversion. Empty input is not treated as a meaningful document.

YAML is a language with parser and version differences. If the target application uses a different YAML implementation, run a representative file through that same implementation too. For JSON-specific syntax checks after conversion, open JSON Formatter.

Review the JSON before using it

Inspect arrays, nested objects, scalar types, and keys before downloadingconverted.json. Conversion does not apply a schema, remove credentials, or repair business data. File reading, parsing, formatting, and downloading stay in your browser, so nothing is uploaded. For a tabular JSON workflow, the relatedJSON to CSV page can export an array of records after you confirm its shape.