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yq

A portable command-line YAML, JSON, XML, CSV and properties processor

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Data & JSON Text Processing Development linuxmacoswindows Go MIT

Description

yq is a lightweight and portable command-line YAML, JSON, XML, CSV, and properties processor. It uses jq-like syntax but works on YAML files and other formats. It can also convert between formats.

Install

homebrewbrew install yq
gogo install github.com/mikefarah/yq/v4@latest
snapsudo snap install yq

AI Summary

Like jq but for YAML (and JSON, XML, CSV). Query, filter, and transform YAML files from the command line. Essential for working with Kubernetes manifests, CI configs, and any YAML-heavy workflow.

Capabilities

  • + Query and filter YAML documents with jq-like expressions
  • + Edit YAML files in-place
  • + Convert between YAML, JSON, XML, CSV, and properties
  • + Merge multiple YAML documents
  • + Handle multi-document YAML files
  • + Evaluate expressions on YAML data

Use When

  • → Editing Kubernetes manifests programmatically
  • → Extracting values from CI/CD config files
  • → Converting between YAML and JSON
  • → Batch-updating YAML configuration files

Avoid When

  • x Working exclusively with JSON (use jq instead)
  • x Need complex programming logic (use Python/Ruby)
  • x Document is not valid YAML

Usage Patterns

Extract a field from YAML

yq '.metadata.name' deployment.yaml

Extracts the name field from Kubernetes YAML

Convert YAML to JSON

yq -o=json '.' config.yaml

Converts a YAML file to JSON format

Update a value in-place

yq -i '.image.tag = "v2.0"' values.yaml

Modifies a field directly in the file

Input / Output

stdin: YAML, JSON, XML, or CSV data
stdout: Transformed data in the specified format
Exit codes:
0 Success
1 Error

Typical Pipelines

yq -o=json '.' config.yaml | jq '.settings'
kubectl get deploy -o yaml | yq '.items[].metadata.name'

Related Tools

jq complementary

jq for JSON, yq for YAML - similar syntax
View AGENTS.md for yq