How does the parser handle quotes, comments and multiline values?

Full-line comments (lines starting with #) and blank lines are skipped. For unquoted values, an inline # comment that is preceded by whitespace is stripped. Single-quoted values are treated literally, while double-quoted values support escape sequences such as \n, \t and \" and may span multiple lines until the closing quote. An optional export prefix is recognized and dropped.

What does the "Coerce types" toggle do?

A .env file has no types, so by default every value is a string. With coercion on, the value true becomes a boolean true, false becomes false, null becomes null, and bare integers or decimals become numbers. This affects JSON, YAML and the TypeScript outputs. The NodeJS.ProcessEnv and shell outputs always treat values as strings, because that is how they behave at runtime.

How are nested keys decided?

In nested JSON mode the converter splits each key on the double underscore (__) separator, or on a dot (.) if no double underscore is present. So DATABASE__HOST and DATABASE__PORT become a DATABASE object containing HOST and PORT. The reverse direction (JSON to .env) does the opposite, joining nested object paths back together with __ to produce flat KEY names.

What exactly does secret masking do?

When masking is on, any variable whose name matches common secret patterns (secret, token, password, api key, access key, private key, client secret, auth, credential) has its value obscured in the output, keeping only the first and last couple of characters. The keys stay visible so the structure is intact, which makes the output safe to drop into a ticket, a pull request, or a chat without leaking the actual values.

What does the validation panel catch?

It reports duplicate keys (where the last value silently wins, just like a real shell), names that are not legal environment variable identifiers (for example names with dashes or a leading digit), values containing unescaped quotes that would break parsing, and a count of values that look like secrets so you can decide whether to enable masking before sharing.

Is my .env data uploaded anywhere?

No. All parsing and conversion happens locally in your browser using a pure, dependency-free engine. Nothing you paste is sent to a server. The only data that ever leaves the page is what you choose to put in a share link, which encodes your input in the URL, so avoid sharing links that contain real secrets unless masking is enabled.

ENV to JSON Converter

Convert a .env file into flat or nested JSON, YAML, a typed TypeScript interface, a NodeJS.ProcessEnv declaration, a docker-compose environment block, a Kubernetes ConfigMap, or a shell export script — and back to .env from JSON. The parser handles export prefixes, quoted and multiline values, and inline comments; a validation panel flags duplicate keys, illegal names and detected secrets, with one-click masking for safe sharing.

About this ToolHow it works, benefits & use cases

A .env file is just KEY=value lines, but real-world ones carry export prefixes, single- and double-quoted values with escapes, multiline values, blank lines, and inline # comments. This converter parses all of that robustly and then re-emits your variables in whatever shape the next step needs. From a .env file it can produce flat JSON, nested JSON (splitting keys on __ or .), YAML, a typed TypeScript interface, a NodeJS.ProcessEnv declaration, a docker-compose environment block, a Kubernetes ConfigMap, or a shell export script. It also runs in reverse, flattening a JSON object back into a normalized .env. A coerce-types toggle turns true/false, numbers and null into real typed values, a mask-secrets toggle obscures any value whose key looks like a secret or token so output is safe to share, and a live validation panel flags duplicate keys, illegal variable names, unescaped quotes, and the number of detected secrets. Everything runs in your browser, so the contents of your .env never leave your machine.

How to Use

1Pick a direction: ".env to target" to convert a .env file, or "JSON to .env" to go the other way.
2Paste your .env content or JSON object into the input panel, or click "Load example" to drop in a sample for the current direction.
3In ".env to target" mode, choose an output format: flat JSON, nested JSON, YAML, TypeScript interface, NodeJS.ProcessEnv, docker-compose, Kubernetes ConfigMap, or shell export script.
4Toggle "Coerce types" to turn true/false, numbers and null into typed values instead of plain strings.
5Toggle "Mask secrets" before sharing to obscure values whose key looks like a secret, token, password, or key.
6Read the live output in the sticky panel and check the validation card, then copy, download, or share the result via URL.

Key Benefits

Robust parser handles export prefixes, quoted and multiline values, escapes, and inline # comments
Eight output targets from one .env: flat JSON, nested JSON, YAML, TypeScript interface, NodeJS.ProcessEnv, docker-compose, Kubernetes ConfigMap, and shell export script
Nested mode splits underscore (__) or dot-delimited keys into a structured object
Reverse direction flattens a nested JSON object back into a normalized .env file
Optional type coercion converts true/false, numbers and null into real typed values
Secret masking obscures sensitive values so output is safe to paste into a ticket or chat
Live validation panel flags duplicate keys, invalid names, unescaped quotes, and counts detected secrets
Runs entirely in the browser and the output is shareable via URL or pipeable into other tools

Common Use Cases

Importing a .env file into application config as a flat or nested JSON object
Generating a typed TypeScript interface or NodeJS.ProcessEnv declaration from your environment variables
Producing a docker-compose environment block or a Kubernetes ConfigMap from an existing .env
Creating a shell export script to source the same variables in a terminal session
Converting a JSON config block back into a .env file for local development
Auditing a .env for duplicate keys, illegal names, and accidentally committed secrets

env.json

10 variables · JSON (flat)

{
  "NODE_ENV": "production",
  "PORT": 3000,
  "DEBUG": false,
  "DATABASE__HOST": "localhost",
  "DATABASE__PORT": 5432,
  "DATABASE__NAME": "my app db",
  "API_KEY": "sk_live_5f3c9a1b2d4e6f8a",
  "JWT_SECRET": "super-secret-value",
  "WELCOME_MSG": "Hello, \"world\"!",
  "RETRIES": 5
}

A couple of notes

Value of "WELCOME_MSG" contains an unescaped double-quote.
2 values look like secrets — enable masking before sharing.

Conversion

Output format

Coerce types

Turn true/false, numbers and null into typed values instead of strings.

Mask secrets

Obscure values whose key looks like a secret/token/password/key.

.env input

Paste your .env file. Supports export, quotes, multiline values and comments.

More than a JSON dump

A .env file is just KEY=value lines, but real files carry export prefixes, quoted and multiline values, and inline # comments. This converter parses all of that, then re-emits it in whatever shape you need next — flat or nested JSON (keys split on __ or .), YAML, a typed TypeScript interface, a NodeJS.ProcessEnv declaration, a docker-compose environment block, a Kubernetes ConfigMap, or a shell export script.

What the validator checks

Duplicate keys — where the last value silently wins.
Names that are not legal env identifiers.
Values with unescaped quotes that would break parsing.
A count of values that look like secrets, with one-click masking before you share.

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ENV to JSON Converter

How to Use

Key Benefits

Common Use Cases

Conversion

More than a JSON dump

What the validator checks

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Frequently Asked Questions - ENV to JSON Converter