How to open .JSON files on Mac
To open .JSON files on Mac, open with vs code, textedit (plain text), or terminal tools..
Step-by-step instructions
- Open with VS Code, TextEdit (plain text), or terminal tools.
Recommended software
- VS Code
- Notepad++/TextEdit
- jq (CLI)
Alternative methods
- Open .JSON in a browser-based viewer if desktop apps fail.
- Try opening .JSON on Mac with a secondary app to rule out app-specific issues.
- Convert .JSON only with trusted tools when direct opening is not possible.
Common issues
Unexpected token parse error
JSON syntax is strict and does not allow comments or trailing commas.
- Validate with a JSON linter.
- Remove trailing commas.
- Ensure property names are quoted.
Security note
Never execute untrusted JSON as code.