jq vs Pipes
jq
jqlang.orgPipes
pipes.digitalSide by side
| Figure | jq | Pipes |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $5/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | — |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 4 |
| Spec score · Data Transformation Tools | 8.6 (#9) | 7.5 (#29) |
| Purpose | jq is a lightweight, flexible command-line JSON processor for slicing, filtering, mapping, and transforming structured data. | Pipes is a visual editor for fetching, creating, and manipulating feeds by connecting blocks. |
| Support | The project points users to Stack Overflow, the #jq Libera.Chat channel, and its Discord server for questions and discussion. | Users can report bugs and request features through the GitHub issue tracker or email [email protected]. |
Plans
In their own words
jq
jq is a free command-line processor for selecting and transforming JSON data. A jq filter takes an input and produces output; filters can be combined to access nested attributes, construct objects, gather results into arrays, or make other transformations. It reads whitespace-separated JSON values and writes serialized results separated by whitespace. Each expression runs on each input value and may produce zero or more outputs. For very large inputs, the --stream option parses incrementally. Output options include compact, raw, ASCII, sorted-key, and colored forms. Written in portable C, jq has no runtime dependencies, and a standalone binary can be copied to another machine of the same type. Standalone executables are available for Linux, macOS, and Windows, with packages listed for Linux distributions and package managers including Homebrew, MacPorts, winget, Scoop, and Chocolatey. A Docker image is also available. Release binaries have SHA-256 checksums, and signed release artifacts use jq release keys. The code is licensed under MIT; the documentation uses CC-BY-3.0.