Compare software

yq vs xq: catalog facts
yq	xq
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
jq-like syntax across YAML, JSON, XML, CSV and TOML Preserves comments and key order when editing YAML in place	Syntax highlighting and automatic indentation Extracts node content for scripting
Shares a name with an unrelated Python wrapper, which causes confusion Expression syntax differs from jq in places that trip people up	Command line only Limited to XML and HTML
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License: MIT	License: MIT
Not stated if an account is needed	No account needed
Not stated if it works offline	Works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 22, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 2, 2026

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