# Pretty JSON Diff Compare two JSON objects and display their differences in a readable format > Canonical page: https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/pretty-json-diff - **Category:** Converter - **Keywords:** json, diff, compare, pretty, format, difference, changes, object ## Overview Pretty JSON Diff is a streamlined utility designed to compare two JSON objects side-by-side, highlighting additions, deletions, and modifications in a clean, readable format. ## Inputs - **First JSON** (textarea): {"name": "John", "age": 30} - **Second JSON** (textarea): {"name": "John", "age": 31} - **Show Unchanged Fields** (checkbox) - **Use Color Codes** (checkbox) ## When to use - Identifying specific changes between two versions of a configuration file or API response. - Debugging data discrepancies between development and production environments. - Verifying that refactored code produces the exact same JSON output as the original version. ## How it works - Paste your original JSON into the first input field and the modified version into the second. - Toggle 'Show Unchanged Fields' if you want to see the full structure or only the modified lines. - Enable 'Use Color Codes' to visually distinguish between added and removed data points. - Review the generated output to instantly spot key-value differences. ## Use cases - Comparing API response payloads to detect unexpected schema changes. - Auditing configuration file updates to ensure no critical settings were accidentally altered. - Syncing data structures between different microservices to ensure consistency. ## Frequently asked questions ### Can I compare large JSON files? Yes, the tool handles large JSON objects, though performance may vary depending on the complexity and nesting depth of the data. ### Does this tool validate JSON syntax? The tool expects valid JSON input; if your JSON is malformed, the comparison may not generate accurate results. ### Is my data stored on your servers? No, all processing is performed locally in your browser to ensure your data remains private and secure. ### What does the color coding represent? Typically, green indicates added fields or values, while red highlights removed or modified data. ### Can I hide the parts of the JSON that didn't change? Yes, simply uncheck the 'Show Unchanged Fields' option to focus exclusively on the differences. ## Related tools - [JSON Key Extractor](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/json-key-extractor): Extract all keys from JSON objects with multiple output formats. Perfect for analyzing JSON structure, documentation generation, and understanding complex nested objects. - [BOM Character Remover](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/data-bom-remover): Remove BOM (Byte Order Mark) characters from text and file content. Perfect for cleaning up text files that have encoding issues, fixing CSV imports, and preparing data for processing. Features: - Detect and remove UTF-8 BOM (EF BB BF) - Detect and remove UTF-16 BOM (FE FF or FF FE) - Detect and remove UTF-32 BOM (00 00 FE FF or FF FE 00 00) - Support multiple input formats - Visual BOM character display - Detailed detection report - Support for batch text processing Common Use Cases: - Fix CSV file import errors - Clean up text file encoding issues - Prepare data for JSON parsing - Fix XML parsing problems - Resolve API data encoding conflicts - Standardize text data format - [JSON Formatter](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/json-formatter): Format and validate JSON data - [JSON Schema Validator](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/json-schema-validator): Validate JSON data against a JSON Schema to verify structure and data types - [AGEX Bundle Diff](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/agex-bundle-diff): Compare two AGEX bundles and highlight metadata or protection-setting differences - [Audio Melody Contour Extractor](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/audio-melody-contour-extractor): Extract a dominant melody path from audio and export MIDI, note events, a pitch contour, SVG, and JSON in one ZIP. - [Config File Semantic Diff](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/config-file-semantic-diff): Compare JSON, YAML, TOML, and dotenv configurations by key path while ignoring ordering and formatting noise. - [ECharts Theme Token Extractor](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/echarts-theme-token-extractor): Extract design tokens — colors, numbers, font sizes and strings — from an ECharts theme JSON and export them straight into your design system. Paste a theme object (the kind registered via echarts.init(dom, themeName)) and the tool walks every leaf, tagging each color (with optional named/rgb → hex normalization), spacing number, font size and string, then emits clean CSS variables, a Tailwind theme.extend config, Style Dictionary tokens.json, or SCSS variables. Bridges the gap between an ECharts visualization theme and Figma/CSS/Tailwind design tokens without copying each value by hand. ## Samples - [JSON Samples](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/json): JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) format examples from simple to complex structures - [Terraform Plan JSON Samples](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/terraform-plan-json-samples): Sample Terraform plan JSON files exported from terraform show -json style payloads for dependency visualization and change review - [Chat Transcript JSON Samples](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/chat-transcript-json): JSON examples for multi-role chat transcripts - [Rich Media JSON Samples](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/rich-media-json): JSON examples for popular rich text editors (TipTap, Quill, Slate) ## Related content - [File and Data Diff Comparison Tools](https://elysiatools.com/en/hubs/file-data-diff-comparison-tools): Compare two candidate artifacts, choose the right diff path for the format, review structural or semantic changes, and finish with integrity checks when approval needs byte-level certainty. - [JSON Change Review and Normalization Workflow](https://elysiatools.com/en/hubs/json-format): Prepare a canonical JSON or JSONL input, compare it with a baseline or environment bundle, investigate quality signals, and deliver a documented normalized result. - [JSON Utility, Inspection, and Transformation Tools](https://elysiatools.com/en/hubs/json-utility): Format, inspect, compare, merge, transform, validate, analyze, and watermark JSON payloads for API and data workflows.