How to Format JSON in VS Code (and Speed Up Your Workflow)

The built-in shortcut

VS Code formats JSON natively, no extension required. Open any .json file and press:

• Mac: Shift + Option + F
• Windows / Linux: Shift + Alt + F

That's it. The file is reformatted with two-space indentation by default.

Format on save

To format every JSON file automatically when you save:

1. Open settings (Cmd/Ctrl + ,)
2. Search for Format On Save
3. Tick the box

For more control, edit settings.json:

{
  "[json]": {
    "editor.defaultFormatter": "vscode.json-language-features",
    "editor.formatOnSave": true,
    "editor.tabSize": 2
  },
  "[jsonc]": {
    "editor.formatOnSave": true,
    "editor.tabSize": 2
  }
}

Format pasted JSON automatically

Add this to settings.json:

{ "editor.formatOnPaste": true }

Now every time you paste minified JSON, VS Code pretty-prints it instantly.

Working with very large JSON files

VS Code's editor struggles past ~50MB. For huge files:

1. Disable language features for that file — Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + P → "Change Language Mode" → "Plain Text"
2. Use a streaming tool — jq, fx, or pipe through python -m json.tool
3. Use JSONNeat in your browser — it handles multi-megabyte files smoothly without VS Code's overhead

Useful extensions

• JSON Tools (eriklynd) — minify, escape, sort keys
• Paste JSON as Code (quicktype) — generates TypeScript / Go / Rust types from a JSON sample
• JSON Crack — visualize JSON as an interactive graph
• Rainbow Brackets — makes nested JSON readable at a glance

Keyboard shortcuts cheat sheet

| Action | Mac | Windows / Linux |

|---|---|---|

| Format document | Shift+Option+F | Shift+Alt+F |

| Format selection | Cmd+K Cmd+F | Ctrl+K Ctrl+F |

| Fold all | Cmd+K Cmd+0 | Ctrl+K Ctrl+0 |

| Unfold all | Cmd+K Cmd+J | Ctrl+K Ctrl+J |

| Find in file | Cmd+F | Ctrl+F |

When VS Code can't help: invalid JSON

If your file has syntax errors, VS Code's formatter refuses to run. Paste it into JSONNeat's validator — it reports the exact line and column of the first error so you can fix it and reformat.