How do I open and read a JSON file?

A .json file stores plain text. Open it in a text editor to read its contents, or use a JSON viewer to format the text and expand nested objects. You do not need to convert the file or install a special application just to read it.

Open a JSON file in your browser

1. Open the JSON Copilot editor.
2. Select Import in the toolbar and choose your .json file. You can also paste the text directly into the input panel.
3. Select Format to add indentation, or open the tree viewer to expand and collapse objects and arrays.

Importing, formatting, and tree navigation work without an account and process the file in your browser. AI actions and saving a cloud project are separate features that send data for processing or storage.

Open a JSON file on Windows or Mac

On Windows, right-click the file, choose Open with, and select Notepad or a code editor. On a Mac, Control-click the file and choose Open With, then TextEdit or a code editor. If double-clicking opens the wrong app, choose the editor explicitly; the file association does not tell you whether the JSON is valid.

If you edit the file, save a copy as plain text with its .json extension. Rich text and typographic quotation marks are not valid JSON syntax. For example, the key "name" needs straight double quotes.

Read and format JSON in VS Code

Open the file in VS Code and choose Format Document from the editor context menu. VS Code supports JSON syntax highlighting, folding, and validation. If formatting fails, check the indicated syntax errors first. Its JSON with Comments mode also accepts comments, but standard JSON files do not. See the official VS Code JSON guide for editing and schema settings.

What should the opened file look like?

This is a small JSON object. The name value is a string, active is a boolean, and orders is an array containing another object.

{
  "name": "Ada",
  "active": true,
  "orders": [
    { "id": 42, "total": 18.5 }
  ]
}

The same data can be stored on one long line. That is minified JSON; formatting adds whitespace without changing the values. In the tree viewer, expand orders, then its first item, to find total.

Open JSON as rows and columns in Excel

Excel versions with the JSON Power Query connector can import it through Data → Get Data → From File → From JSON. Choose your file, then expand the records or lists into the columns you need. Availability depends on your Excel version and platform; see Microsoft’s import instructions.

For an array of records, you can also use JSON to Excel or JSON to CSV. Renaming .json to .xlsx or .csv does not convert the file.

Why will the file not open or format?

• A syntax error: trailing commas, single quotes, comments, or missing brackets can stop parsing. Use the JSON validator to find the problem.
• A different format: a file beginning with an HTML page or an error message may be a failed download. A .jsonl file contains separate JSON values on separate lines and must be read one record at a time.
• A large export: formatting, tree views, and mind maps need memory beyond the original file size. Start with a smaller sample or a local streaming tool if the browser becomes slow.

JSON’s text format and value types are defined in RFC 8259. To understand the structure after opening your file, read about JSON objects and arrays.