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jq vs yq: catalog facts
jq	yq
Free Free and open source under the MIT licence.	Free Free and open source under the MIT licence.
Windows, macOS, Linux, Command line	Windows, macOS, Linux, Command line
A small, expressive language for querying and reshaping JSON Portable C with zero runtime dependencies; the download is one executable	jq-like syntax across YAML, JSON, XML, CSV and TOML Preserves comments and key order when editing YAML in place
The filter syntax is terse and takes practice before it feels natural Error messages on malformed input are not always helpful	Shares a name with an unrelated Python wrapper, which causes confusion Expression syntax differs from jq in places that trip people up
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License: MIT	License: MIT
No account needed	Not stated if an account is needed
Works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 21, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 22, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.