How to Read JSON Files in PowerShell

1. Use Get-Content to Read JSON as a String in PowerShell
2. Use ConvertFrom-Json to Read JSON as a Custom Object in PowerShell
3. Use Invoke-WebRequest to Read JSON From Web in PowerShell

This tutorial demonstrates how to read JSON files in PowerShell.

Use Get-Content to Read JSON as a String in PowerShell

The Get-Content command is a PowerShell command that reads an item’s content. This command takes a Path parameter that specifies the item’s location; the content is usually text data.

The JSON-formatted string is also text data; this command can read a JSON file and output it as a string to the shell.

The following command reads a JSON file as a string.

Get-Content "transactions.json"

Output:

[
    {
        "Date": "19/5/2022",
        "ProductId": "0001",
        "ProductName": "Fizzy Drink",
        "Cost": "2.32",
        "Currency": "USD"
    },
    {
        "Date": "16/5/2022",
        "ProductId": "0002",
        "ProductName": "Dark Chocolate",
        "Cost": "6.52",
        "Currency": "USD"
    },
    {
        "Date": "10/5/2022",
        "ProductId": "0003",
        "ProductName": "Snacks",
        "Cost": "4.2",
        "Currency": "USD"
    }
]

Use ConvertFrom-Json to Read JSON as a Custom Object in PowerShell

The ConvertFrom-Json is a PowerShell command that converts a JSON-formatted string into a PowerShell custom object or PSCustomObject. This object includes all the properties corresponding to the JSON fields.

The following command combines the Get-Content with the ConvertFrom-Json to read a JSON as PSCustomObject.

Get-Content "transactions.json" | ConvertFrom-Json

Output:

Date        : 19/5/2022
ProductId   : 0001
ProductName : Fizzy Drink
Cost        : 2.32
Currency    : USD

Date        : 16/5/2022
ProductId   : 0002
ProductName : Dark Chocolate
Cost        : 6.52
Currency    : USD

Date        : 10/5/2022
ProductId   : 0003
ProductName : Snacks
Cost        : 4.2
Currency    : USD

Use Invoke-WebRequest to Read JSON From Web in PowerShell

JSON is a data interchange format commonly used on the web for client and server communications. A client sends an HTTP/HTTPS request to a server, and as a result, the server returns the requested data as JSON.

The Invoke-WebRequest sends an HTTP request to a specified URI. The server receives the request and responds with a JSON accordingly.

The following command sends a web request to a server and parses the JSON with ConvertFrom-Json.

Invoke-WebRequest -Uri https://my-json-server.typicode.com/typicode/demo/posts | ConvertFrom-Json

Output:

id title
-- -----
 1 Post 1
 2 Post 2
 3 Post 3