JSON escape / unescape.
Escape text so it can live inside a JSON string — or unescape a JSON-escaped blob back into readable text. Free, instant, and private: everything runs in your browser.
Escape turns quotes, backslashes, and line breaks into \", \\, and \n so the text can sit inside a JSON string. Unescape reverses it. The output has no surrounding quotes — it pastes straight between them.
Related: JSON minifier → · All free tools →
Do more with the JSON behind the escapes
Escaped JSON usually means JSON nested inside a JSON string — a log line wrapping a payload, an env var holding config. Once you unescape it, you're holding real JSON, and that's what the jsonbolt desktop app is built for: it opens clipboard JSON with one keystroke and renders even gigabyte payloads instantly.
Copy the result
One click on Copy above — the unescaped payload is on your clipboard.
Press Win + J⌃ ⌥ J
jsonbolt launches and opens your clipboard in one step. (Opt-in: Settings → Launch.)
Explore & export
Search the tree, extract any subtree by path, and export the selection as YAML, CSV, or XML.
Free for personal use — no signup. YAML, CSV, and XML export are built in.
JSON escape rules
A JSON string may contain any unicode character except a bare double quote, a bare backslash, and control characters below U+0020. Those must be written as escape sequences:
| Character | Escaped as |
|---|---|
Double quote " | \" |
Backslash \ | \\ |
| Newline | \n |
| Tab | \t |
| Carriage return | \r |
| Backspace / form feed | \b / \f |
| Other control characters | |
Two common surprises: forward slashes may be escaped as \/ but never have to be, and non-ASCII text — accents, CJK, emoji — is perfectly legal unescaped. This tool escapes only what the spec requires, so the output stays readable.
How this tool handles the details
- Escape output has no surrounding quotes — it pastes directly between the quotes of a JSON string. Wrap it in
"…"yourself if you need a complete literal. - Unescape accepts both forms — with or without surrounding quotes — and validates the escape sequences, showing a parser error for broken ones like a lone trailing backslash.
- Unicode passes through untouched in both directions;
\uXXXXsequences decode to their real characters on unescape. - Everything runs locally. Log lines with tokens and secrets never leave the tab.
FAQ
How do I escape double quotes in JSON?
Put a backslash before each one: " becomes \". Paste your text into this page in Escape mode and every quote, backslash, newline, and control character is escaped for you — the output drops straight between the quotes of a JSON string.
Which characters must be escaped in a JSON string?
Double quotes (\"), backslashes (\\), and all control characters below U+0020 — newline becomes \n, tab \t, carriage return \r, backspace \b, form feed \f, and anything else \u00XX. Forward slashes and non-ASCII characters like é or emoji are legal unescaped.
Does the escaped output include the surrounding quotes?
No. The output is just the escaped content, so you can paste it directly between the quotes of a JSON string. Add quotes around it if you need a complete JSON string literal.
How do I unescape a JSON string?
Switch to Unescape mode and paste the escaped text — with or without its surrounding quotes. The \n, \", \\, and \uXXXX sequences turn back into real characters. Invalid escape sequences show a parser error.
Is my text uploaded to a server?
No. Escaping and unescaping run entirely in your browser. Your data never leaves your machine, so it's safe for log lines and payloads that contain secrets.
How do I read JSON that is full of escaped JSON?
That's usually JSON nested inside a JSON string — common in log pipelines. Unescape it here, then press Win + J⌃ ⌥ J with the result on your clipboard: the jsonbolt desktop app opens it as an explorable tree, even at multi-gigabyte scale.