JSON is everywhere - APIs, config files, logs. But minified or inconsistently formatted JSON is painful to read and review. A few simple conventions make it far more maintainable.
1. Use Consistent Indentation
Pick 2 spaces (the most common convention) and stick to it across your project. Consistent indentation makes structure obvious at a glance and keeps diffs clean.
{
"name": "TechTools",
"tools": 393,
"free": true
}2. Keep Keys Predictable
- Use a single naming style - `camelCase` for JavaScript APIs, `snake_case` if your backend prefers it. Don't mix.
- Avoid spaces and special characters in keys.
- Group related keys together and keep ordering stable to minimize diff noise.
3. Validate Before You Ship
A single trailing comma or unquoted key will break a parser. Always validate JSON before committing it or sending it to an API.
JSON does not allow trailing commas, comments, or single quotes. If you copied config from JavaScript, those will cause parse errors.
4. Format for Review, Minify for Production
Use pretty-printed JSON in source control and during development so it's reviewable. Minify it (strip whitespace) only when serving over the wire to save bandwidth.
The JSON Formatter does both - paste messy JSON to instantly beautify and validate it, or minify it for production with one click. Everything runs in your browser, so sensitive payloads never leave your machine.