Updated March 6, 2023
Difference Between JSON and CSV
JSON is abbreviated as JavaScript Object Notation. It is used as the syntax for storing and exchanging the data. It is a language-independent format. JSON is text, and it can be converted any JavaScript object into JSON and send JSON to the server. JSON received from the server can also be converted into javascript objects. It is referred to as a lightweight data-interchange format. It is self-describing and easy to understand. CSV is abbreviated as Comma Separated Value. It is a delimiting text that uses the comma to separate the file. The tabular data has been saved in the CSV file as plain text data separated by the comma. CSV formats are widely used to represent the set or sequence of records in which each record has an identical list of fields.
Let us study much more about JSON vs CSV in detail:
The filename extension of this is .json, and the internet media type is application/JSON. The text is the code type for JSON. It was developed by Douglas Crock ford. It was initially released in the year 2001. It is referred to as the subset of JavaScript and the ECMA script. The structure of JSON is based on the name/value pair in which data is represented. Curly braces to hold objects and each name followed by the colon, and the comma separates the pairs. The square brackets to hold arrays and values. JSON is being supported by all the programming languages like Java, Net (C#), PHP, Perl, Python, Ruby, etc.
CSV format is referred to as the most compact format from all the formats of a file. CSV format is about half the size of the JSON and another format file. It helps in reducing the bandwidth, and the size of the below would be very less. Its filename extension is .csv and its internet media type is text/CSV. It supports multi-platform. It is a common data exchange format that is mainly supported by business and scientific applications.
CSV file does not require a specific character encoding, byte order. All records should have the same number of fields, and they should be in the same order. The record ends at the line terminator. The data within fields are interpreted as the sequence of characters, not a sequence of bytes. If plain text convention is not followed, then the CSV file no longer contains sufficient information to interpret it correctly. A single comma must separate the adjacent fields. These formats are varying in this choice of separator character. Line terminators can be embedded as data within fields, so software must be recognized as quoted line separators in order to assemble an entire record correctly.
Head to Head Comparison between JSON and CSV (Infographics)
Below is the top 6 difference between JSON vs CSV:
Key Difference Between JSON and CSV
Both are popular choices in the market; let us discuss some of the major difference:
- In JSON, each object can have different fields, and the field order is not significant in JSON. In the CSV file, all the records should have the same fields, and they should be in the same order.
- A JSON object is an unordered set of name/value pair. CSV file might have the records as heterogeneous.
- In JSON, there is no header. Each object contains field names. In CSV, if all the data is the same, all the data records have the same layout, then the first record would be the header containing field names.
- JSON can contain nested structures. In JSON, the value can be of several types, including an array or an object. JSON is mainly used where the log records have been created and maintained like repeating sections. CSV is not based on nested structures. It is strictly based on two dimensional and tabular format. In CSV, to handle the log sections that are kept on repeating, the method is used as the vertical separation.
- JSON mainly uses JavaScript data types. CSV does not have any data types. It requires external metadata to identify data types.
- JSON is more verbose than CSV. CSV is more concise than JSON.
JSON vs CSV Comparison Table
Below is the topmost comparison between JSON vs CSV
| Basic Comparison | JSON | CSV |
| Definition | JSON is used for storing and exchanging the data. | CSV is delimiting text that uses the comma to separate the file. |
| Full-Form | JavaScript Object Notation. | Comma Separated Values. |
| Compact | It is less compact as compared to the CSV file. | The CSV files are more compact than other file formats. |
| Hierarchical | JSON shows better hierarchical and other relational data | CSV is not able to show the data properly. |
| Scalability | JSON has a lot of scalability in terms of adding and editing the content | CSV is lagging in terms of scalability |
| Versatile | JSON is much versatile. | CSV is very less versatile. |
Performance Comparison
JSON is referred to as comparatively better than CSV while working with the large volume of data and in terms of scalability of files or application. CSV is excellent at working with small files and fewer data. But while loading the large volume of data and converting it into the other format like excel, excel not to follow the CSV standards, even though everything is defined properly in the file. CSV does not support data hierarchies. In JSON, it is significantly easier to work within and mainly used for the programming languages, but JSON file becomes twice the CSV file when a lot of data is required or maintained in files. JSON is also having APIs, which automatically converts JSON into the native structure. The newer APIs, by default, is supporting the JSON format.
Conclusion
In this JSON vs CSV article, we have seen that both JSON vs CSV file is used for storing the data in different forms and format. JSON is referred to as the best data exchange format as of now. It is lightweight, compact and versatile. CSV is mainly used only when there is a requirement of sending a large volume of data, and there is an issue with bandwidth. CSV cannot be used where the data is complex and unstructured; then only JSON is the better option to work with complex data. These both formats and text are having their own pros and cons, like each technology or language is having. The selection of format can have done based on the scalability of the file or data. If the data has to grow with time and need to compromise with bandwidth, then CSV is a better option. JSON can be expensive, but it will be used for a long time than CSV.
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