How to Convert JSON to Excel — 3 Free Methods

JSON is the standard format for APIs and web data, but Excel cannot open JSON files natively in most versions. The easiest workaround is converting JSON to CSV first — which Excel opens perfectly — or using Excel's built-in Power Query for JSON. Here are the three best free methods.

Method 1: JSON to CSV → Open in Excel (Fastest, All Versions)

This is the quickest method and works in all Excel versions — Excel 2007 and later.

1. Open TextWonder's JSON to CSV Converter.
2. Paste your JSON array into the input box. It should be an array of objects like:
   [{"name":"Alice","age":30},{"name":"Bob","age":25}]
3. Click Convert. The tool extracts the keys as column headers and each object as a row.
4. Click Download CSV.
5. Open the downloaded .csv file in Excel — it opens automatically with data in columns.
6. Save as .xlsx via File → Save As → Excel Workbook (.xlsx).

Method 2: Excel Power Query — Import JSON Directly (Excel 2016+)

Excel 2016 and Microsoft 365 include Power Query, which can import JSON files directly:

1. Save your JSON data as a .json file (open Notepad, paste the JSON, save as data.json).
2. Open Excel and go to the Data tab.
3. Click Get Data → From File → From JSON.
4. Browse to your .json file and click Import.
5. Power Query opens. Click Into Table to convert the list to a table.
6. Expand any nested columns using the expand icon (⇔) next to column headers.
7. Click Close & Load to import the data into a worksheet.

Best for: Complex or nested JSON that needs transformation. Power Query lets you filter, rename, and reshape before loading into Excel.

Method 3: Google Sheets (No Excel Needed)

If you do not have Excel, Google Sheets can handle JSON via a helper formula or by importing CSV:

1. Convert JSON to CSV using the JSON to CSV tool.
2. Open Google Sheets → File → Import → Upload your CSV file.
3. The data loads into a spreadsheet. Export as Excel via File → Download → Microsoft Excel (.xlsx).

Tips for Clean JSON to Excel Conversion

• Flatten nested JSON first: Objects inside objects (e.g. "address":{"city":"London"}) need to be flattened before converting. Use a JSON formatter to identify nested fields.
• Arrays inside objects: If a field contains an array (e.g. tags: ["a","b"]), it will appear as a string in CSV. Consider joining the array values before conversion.
• Large JSON files: For very large JSON (10,000+ records), Power Query handles it more efficiently than copy-pasting.