JSON to YAML Converter — Free & In Your Browser
Valid JSON in, clean readable YAML out — config files without the bracket noise.
🔒 Runs in your browser — files never uploaded ⚡ No signup 💯 Free
Convert JSON to YAML instantly — the direction you need when a tool's documentation shows JSON but your config file is YAML: Kubernetes manifests, GitHub Actions, docker-compose, CI pipelines. The output is standard block-style YAML, two-space indented, with quoting added only where YAML actually needs it.
Conversion is live and local — nothing you paste leaves your browser.
How to use JSON to YAML
- Paste JSON into the left pane.
- Read the YAML on the right — it updates as you type, and parse errors say what's wrong.
- Copy or download as a .yaml file.
Everything JSON is already YAML
A fact that surprises people: YAML 1.2 is a superset of JSON — any valid JSON document is technically valid YAML. What this converter produces is the idiomatic block style humans actually write: indentation instead of braces, dashes for list items, quotes only where required. Same data, reads like a config file.
The strings YAML would misread
Strings that YAML would parse as something else get quoted automatically — "3.0" stays a string instead of becoming the number 3, "null" stays a word. One caveat worth knowing: this tool emits YAML 1.2, where only true/false are booleans. Older YAML 1.1 parsers (PyYAML among them) also treat bare no, yes, on and off as booleans — the famous "Norway problem", where the country code NO becomes false. If your output is destined for a 1.1 parser, quote those values in your source data.
Indentation is the syntax
In YAML, structure is whitespace — a config that fails to load after hand-editing usually has a mis-indented line or a tab character (YAML forbids tabs for indentation). Converting from JSON sidesteps the whole class of error: get the structure right in JSON, convert, paste.
Related
Mirror direction: YAML to JSON — useful for validating a YAML file by round-tripping it.
Frequently asked questions
Is all JSON valid YAML?
Technically yes — YAML 1.2 is a superset of JSON, so you could paste JSON into a YAML file and it would parse. This converter produces idiomatic block-style YAML instead, because the point of YAML is being pleasant for humans to read and edit.
Why are some strings quoted in the output and others not?
Strings the YAML schema would misread get quotes — "3.0", "null", strings with special characters — and the rest stay bare for readability. Note this is YAML 1.2 output: if a legacy 1.1 parser (PyYAML) will consume it, quote values like no/on in your source, since 1.1 reads those bare words as booleans.
Can I use the output in Kubernetes / GitHub Actions / docker-compose?
Yes — two-space block style is exactly the convention those ecosystems use. Whether the content is a valid manifest is the schema's business, but the YAML itself will parse.
Does key order survive?
Yes — keys come out in the order your JSON has them. Neither format treats order as significant data, but stable order keeps diffs readable, which is half the reason configs are YAML at all.