ToolNestFree JSON to XML Converter
Last updated: October 23, 2026
Quick answer: Legacy systems still speak XML — SOAP APIs, enterprise feeds, healthcare HL7 interfaces, and government data exchanges all expect angle brackets where your modern stack produces curly braces. This free JSON to XML converter bridges the gap: paste any JSON and it returns well-formed XML with a proper declaration, a root element you name, arrays turned into repeated elements, and keys starting with @ turned into attributes. Invalid JSON gets a plain-language error pointing at the problem instead of a blank page. Everything runs in your browser, so API payloads, database schemas, and internal configuration never leave your device.
Conventions: arrays become repeated elements with the same tag; keys starting with @ become attributes of their parent element; a #text key becomes the element's text content; null becomes a self-closing tag; keys that are not valid XML names (starting with a digit, containing spaces) are sanitized with underscores. Your JSON is parsed locally — nothing is uploaded.
✓ Free forever · ✓ No signup · ✓ Tool inputs stay in your browser — never sent to our servers.
How to Use the JSON to XML Converter
- Paste your JSON into the input box — or press Load sample to see the conventions on a working example first.
- Name your root element. XML requires exactly one root, and JSON does not, so the converter wraps your data in one: 'root' by default, 'catalog', 'response', or whatever your target schema demands.
- Pick your indentation (2 spaces, 4 spaces, tab, or none for minified output) and decide whether to include the XML declaration.
- Press Convert to XML. If the JSON is invalid, the error message quotes the parser's complaint — a missing comma or an unquoted key — so you fix the input instead of guessing.
- Copy the result or Download .xml and paste it straight into your SOAP request, feed file, or schema validator.
Why Use Our JSON to XML Converter?
- Arrays done correctly — a JSON array under 'book' becomes repeated <book> elements, not one element with comma-joined text, which is the mistake that breaks most naive converters.
- @attributes and #text — {"book": {"@isbn": "123", "title": "Dune"}} becomes <book isbn="123"><title>Dune</title></book>, so attribute-heavy schemas (RSS, SVG metadata, config files) convert faithfully.
- Name sanitization — keys starting with a digit or containing spaces are not valid XML names, so '123abc' becomes '_123abc' and 'first name' becomes 'first_name' instead of producing XML that no parser accepts.
- Full escaping — &, <, >, and quotes in your data are escaped in text and attribute values, so the output is well-formed even when the input contains markup-like strings.
- Root, indent, and declaration controls — the three output settings that actually differ between target systems, instead of a fixed format you have to reformat by hand.
- Private by design — conversion runs entirely in your browser; API keys, schemas, and internal payloads are never uploaded to a server.
Common Use Cases
- Feeding a legacy SOAP API: Your new service emits JSON, but the payment provider's SOAP endpoint accepts only XML with a specific root and attribute layout. Convert a sample payload, set the root to the operation name, map the provider's attribute fields with @ keys, and you have a request body to test against their sandbox in minutes.
- Migrating a config format: A deployment pipeline expects XML configuration while the team authors JSON. Convert the JSON config, keep the @attribute conventions for the fields the pipeline reads as attributes, and diff the result against a known-good XML config — the declaration and indentation controls make the diff readable.
- Building RSS or sitemap-style feeds from JSON data: Feed formats are XML with attribute-heavy items. Shape your JSON with @ keys for attributes (guid, version) and repeated elements for entries, convert, and validate the output against the feed schema — faster than hand-writing angle brackets for a hundred items.
- Teaching the JSON/XML mapping: Students grasp the format difference fastest by converting the same data both ways: objects become nested elements, arrays become repeated elements, and the @/#text conventions show exactly where the two models disagree. The sample button gives a classroom-ready example in one click.
JSON to XML Converter vs Alternatives
- FreeFormatter / CodeBeautify-style converter sites: The classic generalist converters — solid output, and some let you name array elements or fetch from a URL. They are ad-supported general tool farms, and their pages bury the converter under surrounding content; this page is one converter with the attribute and sanitization conventions documented on the page itself.
- Library docs (xml2js, dicttoxml, xmltodict): The right choice when conversion lives inside your codebase — they handle streaming, namespaces, and edge cases this browser tool does not. The wrong choice for a one-off conversion: installing a package and writing a script to convert one payload is slower than pasting it here.
- AI chatbots: Fast for a small snippet, but they reformat unpredictably, occasionally invent attributes, and — critically — your payload leaves your machine. For internal schemas and API keys, a local converter is the only option that keeps the data private.
- Your editor's XML plugin: If you live in VS Code or IntelliJ, a plugin converts without leaving the editor and is the best daily driver. This page is for the machine without the plugin, the quick check, and the shareable result you can paste into a ticket.
Generalist converter farms will convert your JSON, and libraries will convert it inside your code. For a one-off conversion with documented attribute conventions, honest array handling, and zero upload of your payload, this page is the fastest private route from JSON to well-formed XML.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I convert JSON to XML online for free?
Paste your JSON into the input box above, name the root element your target system expects, and press Convert to XML. The output appears instantly with a declaration, proper indentation, and arrays as repeated elements — then copy it or download the .xml file. No signup, no install, no upload.
How are JSON arrays converted to XML?
Each array item becomes a repeated element with the array key's name. {"tags": ["dev", "writer"]} becomes <tags>dev</tags><tags>writer</tags>. A root-level array has no key, so its items become <item> elements under your root. This is the standard convention, but note it is lossy in one direction: from the XML alone you cannot tell a single repeated element from a one-item array, so keep the JSON if you need a perfect round trip.
How do I make a JSON key an XML attribute?
Prefix the key with @: {"book": {"@isbn": "9780441172719", "title": "Dune"}} converts to <book isbn="9780441172719"><title>Dune</title></book>. For an element that needs both text and attributes, use #text for the content: {"note": {"#text": "Hello", "@lang": "en"}} becomes <note lang="en">Hello</note>.
What happens to null, numbers, and booleans?
Numbers and booleans become text content — 36 becomes <age>36</age>, true becomes <open>true</open> — because XML has no native number or boolean type; the consuming parser decides the type. Null becomes a self-closing tag, <middleName />, which is the honest XML representation of 'present but empty'.
Why is the XML bigger than the JSON?
XML repeats every key as an opening and closing tag, so converted output is typically 1.5–3× the size of the source JSON. That verbosity is the price of XML's self-describing structure and schema validation — it is expected, not a bug, and it is why minified output exists for transmission while indented output exists for humans.
Is my JSON data sent to a server?
No. The conversion runs entirely in JavaScript in your browser, so the data you paste — which may include API keys, database schemas, or internal configuration — never leaves your device. That is also why there is no file-size queue or account: the practical limit is your device's memory.
Can I convert XML back to JSON with this tool?
Not with this tool — it converts JSON to XML only, because the two directions need different conventions (attributes vs keys, repeated elements vs arrays). For the reverse trip, look for a dedicated XML-to-JSON converter and check how it handles attributes, or your round trip will silently change shape.