How to Convert JSON to Excel Without Coding (3 Methods)

The fastest method for a simple JSON array: Use Power Query in Excel — Data → Get Data → From File → From JSON → select your file → Load to worksheet. This works natively in Excel 365 and Excel 2016+ without any add-ins.

For nested JSON (objects inside objects), a browser-based flattener is simpler.

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Method 1: Power Query in Excel (No Code, Built-In)

1. In Excel, click Data → Get Data → From File → From JSON
2. Browse to your JSON file → Import
3. Power Query Editor opens showing your JSON structure
4. Click Convert to Table (top left) if it shows a "List" type
5. Click the column expand icon (double arrows) to expand object fields into columns
6. Click Close & Load

Your JSON data is now a worksheet table.

Best for: Simple JSON arrays of flat objects. Works cleanly on:

[{"name": "John", "email": "john@acme.com"}, ...]

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Struggle points: Nested objects and arrays (JSON arrays within JSON objects) require additional Power Query steps to expand each nested layer manually.

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Method 2: Browser Converter Tool (Best for Nested JSON)

For JSON that has nested structures — objects inside arrays inside objects — a dedicated converter handles the flattening automatically:

1. Go to Sohovi's JSON to CSV converter
2. Paste your JSON or upload the file
3. The tool flattens nested objects into dotted column names (address.city, address.zip)
4. Download the CSV
5. Open the CSV in Excel

Best for: Nested JSON that would require multiple Power Query expansion steps.

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Method 3: Paste + Text to Columns (For Small, Simple JSON)

For a small JSON array with flat objects:

1. Copy the JSON text
2. Paste into a text editor, remove the [ and ] brackets
3. Each JSON object {...} becomes one row
4. Paste into Excel
5. Use Data → Text to Columns to split on , (or adjust as needed)

Best for: Very small datasets where you want to avoid any tooling. Not practical for more than 20–30 rows.

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Handling Common JSON Structures

Flat array of objects (most common):

[{"id": 1, "name": "John"}, {"id": 2, "name": "Sarah"}]

→ Use Power Query or any converter. Each key becomes a column.

Nested objects:

[{"name": "John", "address": {"city": "NYC", "zip": "10001"}}]

→ Use the browser tool (flattens to address.city, address.zip columns).

Array wrapped in a key:

{"data": [{"name": "John"}, ...]}

→ In Power Query: expand the "data" key first, then expand the array.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can Excel open a JSON file directly by double-clicking? No — Excel doesn't open JSON files by default. You need to use the Get Data import process (Power Query) or convert to CSV first.

Q: My JSON has arrays inside objects (e.g., a "tags" field that's an array). How do I handle that? Arrays inside objects are the hardest case to flatten into a spreadsheet. Options: (1) expand each array into multiple columns (tag1, tag2, tag3) if the array is short and fixed-length; (2) concatenate the array values into a single cell as a comma-separated string; or (3) use a Python script for full control. The browser converter tool handles simple cases automatically.

Q: Does this work with API responses? Yes. Copy the API response JSON body (e.g., from Postman or a browser), paste it into a text file, save as .json, then import into Excel using Power Query.

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Convert JSON to Excel in your browser — Sohovi's JSON to CSV converter handles nested JSON and flattens it automatically. Download as CSV and open in Excel.