Most JSON formatters I’ve used only handle one JSON at a time.
That becomes painful when you're working with multiple API responses or trying to compare payloads.
I wanted something closer to a workspace, not just a formatter — so I explored a local-first approach where everything runs entirely in the browser (no network calls).
What I focused on
- Working with multiple JSONs simultaneously (like tabs)
- Keeping everything private and offline
- Adding a diff view for comparing objects
- Handling large JSON files without freezing the UI
Challenges I ran into
1. Large JSON performance
Rendering deeply nested objects can easily block the main thread.
I had to be careful with parsing, virtualization, and avoiding unnecessary re-renders.
2. Diffing nested structures
Simple diff algorithms break down with large or deeply nested JSON.
Balancing accuracy vs performance was tricky.
3. Local storage limits
Managing multiple JSONs locally isn’t trivial — especially when users paste large payloads.
Curious about others’ approaches
- How do you handle diffing large JSON objects efficiently?
- Any patterns for multi-document workflows in the browser?
- Better ways to manage large data in local-first apps?
Would love to hear how others are solving these problems.
My tool - https://www.multijson.com
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