Data interchange formats

Protocol Buffers is a binary serialization framework used to encode structured information into compact payloads to reduce network bandwidth and storage. It functions as a cross-language data interchange standard that enables different platforms and languages to exchange structured data using a shared schema. The project includes an interface definition language compiler that transforms schema definitions into type-safe source code for multiple target programming languages. This mechanism decouples data structures from specific language memory layouts and ensures consistent data handling acro

CapnProto is a zero-copy serialization framework and remote procedure call system. It serves as a C++ communication library providing a schema-based data interchange format that eliminates the need to encode or decode data before reading it from memory. The system enables high-performance data serialization and low-latency network communication. It supports cross-language data exchange by using a defined schema to ensure consistent binary representation across different platforms. The framework provides tools for implementing remote procedure calls, allowing functions to be invoked on a remo

Jackson is a Java data binding framework and multi-format data serializer used to translate data structures into native language objects. It functions as a JSON data binding library and a streaming parser that reads and writes data as discrete tokens to process large datasets with minimal memory. The project distinguishes itself through a bytecode serialization accelerator that replaces standard reflection with generated bytecode to increase data binding speed. It employs a module-based extensibility model to support a wide range of formats beyond JSON, including XML, YAML, CSV, TOML, and bin

This project is a Protocol Buffers implementation for Go, providing a binary serialization framework to convert native data structures into a compact binary format for efficient network transmission and storage. It functions as a language bindings generator, utilizing a compiler plugin to create Go source code from platform-neutral protocol buffer definitions. The implementation includes a JSON data mapper that transforms structured binary messages into JSON format to facilitate compatibility with web services and external APIs. It also enables cross-language data exchange by using a common s

rkyv is a zero-copy deserialization framework for Rust that provides a binary serialization format for memory-mappable data archives. It allows complex data structures to be mapped to bytes and accessed directly from a buffer without allocating new memory or copying data. The project enables the serialization of polymorphic types and trait objects, maintaining their dynamic behavior and structure within the binary form. It utilizes relative-pointer addressing and byte-aligned structure packing to ensure data remains valid regardless of where it is loaded in memory. The framework covers high-

Fory is a cross-language serialization framework and binary data serializer designed to convert complex object graphs into a compact binary format for high-performance data exchange. It includes an IDL-based schema compiler to transform interface definition language files into type-safe native data models and a schema evolution manager to maintain forward and backward compatibility. The project features a zero-copy data access layer that allows reading specific fields from binary rows without deserializing the entire object. It supports dual-mode serialization, enabling a toggle between a por

protobuf.js is a JavaScript and TypeScript library for encoding and decoding structured data using the Protocol Buffers binary format. It functions as a dynamic parser that can load and process schemas at runtime, a JSON transcoder for converting messages to human-readable formats, and a framework for building transport-agnostic remote procedure call clients. The project distinguishes itself by offering both dynamic message handling and a static code generator that produces TypeScript declarations and JavaScript modules to reduce runtime overhead. It also provides a reflection API for definin

MessagePack-CSharp is a high-performance binary serialization library for .NET applications that converts object graphs into the MessagePack format. It functions as a C# data serialization toolkit and a polymorphic binary encoder capable of handling abstract classes and interfaces using union keys to identify concrete derived types. The library provides a binary format transcoder to transform binary data into human-readable JSON for debugging. It supports ahead-of-time formatter generation to avoid runtime overhead and implements LZ4 binary compression to reduce the size of serialized data.

Fury is a multi-language binary serialization framework designed for encoding domain objects and complex graphs to facilitate cross-language data exchange. It includes an interface definition language compiler that translates schema definitions into idiomatic native types and serialization boilerplate across multiple languages. The project distinguishes itself through a zero-copy binary reader that allows specific fields to be accessed without deserializing the entire object, as well as an object graph serializer that preserves circular references and referential integrity. It also features a

This is a TOML parser and serializer for the Go language. It serves as a data serialization library and configuration file mapper that encodes and decodes data between Go structures and the TOML configuration format. The library provides interfaces for custom type marshaling, allowing for specialized logic when parsing or serializing specific data types. It transforms structured objects into deterministic TOML documents for storage or transmission. The project covers a broad range of data processing capabilities, including structured value encoding, TOML data generation, and metadata inspect

Protocol Buffers is a language-neutral, platform-agnostic mechanism for serializing structured data. It provides a schema-driven toolchain that compiles declarative data definitions into type-safe source code, enabling consistent communication and strongly typed API contracts across services written in different programming languages. The project distinguishes itself through a highly efficient binary wire format that utilizes tag-based encoding and variable-width integer compression to minimize payload size and processing overhead. It supports robust evolutionary schema management, allowing d

This project is a framework for the efficient serialization and deserialization of data structures. It provides a unified, macro-based interface that automates the conversion of complex internal objects into standardized formats and reconstructs them from raw input streams or buffers. By leveraging compile-time code generation, the library minimizes manual implementation overhead while ensuring consistent logic across diverse data types. The framework distinguishes itself through a format-agnostic data model and a visitor-based parsing architecture that decouples data structures from specific

Thrift is a cross-language remote procedure call framework and data serialization protocol. It provides an interface definition language to specify data types and service interfaces in a neutral format, enabling the automated generation of client and server code across multiple programming languages. The project functions as a polyglot service communicator using a layered software stack to ensure interoperable communication. It focuses on implementing cross-language remote procedure calls and transforming complex data structures into standardized formats for efficient network transport. The

msgspec is a high-performance data modeling, serialization, and schema validation toolkit for Python. It serves as a type-safe serialization framework that integrates schema enforcement and data parsing into a single pass, functioning as both a data serialization library and a schema validation system based on standard Python type annotations. The project distinguishes itself through high-performance structural primitives, including compilation-based routine generation and zero-copy buffer parsing. It optimizes memory usage via garbage collection-aware layouts and reduces processing overhead

nom is a Rust parser combinator framework used to build complex parsers for binary and text data. It functions as an abstract syntax tree generator and a bit-level binary parser, allowing users to construct structured data by combining small, reusable parsing functions. The framework provides specialized support for zero-copy binary parsing, extracting data as slices from raw byte arrays to avoid memory allocations. It also includes a streaming data parser capable of processing partial input chunks from networks or files and signaling when additional input is required. The project covers a b

This project is a Protocol Buffers Swift library and framework providing a runtime for serializing and deserializing structured data. It includes a code generator that transforms schema files into type-safe Swift structures and a binary serialization framework for converting data into compact streams. The library functions as a JSON data mapper, transforming messages into standard JSON representations to facilitate cross-platform data exchange. It utilizes a schema-driven approach to ensure consistent data modeling between Swift applications and services written in other languages. The frame

Kryo is a Java binary serialization framework and object cloning library used to convert Java objects into a compact binary format and restore them from bytes. It provides a system for creating deep or shallow copies of complex object graphs without requiring binary conversion. The project utilizes variable-length integer encoding and integer-ID class registration to reduce the size of serialized data. It handles complex object graphs through circular reference tracking to prevent data duplication and infinite loops. To maintain long-term data viability, it includes schema evolution managemen

Apache Avro is a data serialization system.

FlatBuffers is a cross-platform serialization library designed for performance-critical applications that require efficient, zero-copy data access. By organizing data in a structured binary format, it allows applications to read and write complex data structures directly from memory-mapped buffers without the need for intermediate parsing or temporary object allocation. The project distinguishes itself through a schema-driven approach that balances high-performance access with long-term data evolution. It utilizes a unique memory layout featuring relative offsets and inline fixed-size structu

This library is a header-only C++ framework designed for the serialization, parsing, and manipulation of structured data. It provides a recursive variant data model that represents arbitrary structures as native types, allowing developers to navigate, modify, and patch hierarchical data using standard pointer paths and declarative update patterns. The project distinguishes itself through its template-based architecture, which enables type-safe data structures and custom type mapping at compile time. It offers a unified interface for binary format abstraction, supporting multiple compact repre

RapidJSON is a header-only C++ library designed for high-performance parsing, generation, and manipulation of JSON data. It functions as a dual-mode engine, providing both an in-memory document object model for tree-based manipulation and a stream-based interface for event-driven processing. The library is built to minimize memory footprint and maximize execution speed, making it suitable for resource-constrained environments. The library distinguishes itself through advanced memory management and optimization techniques, including in-situ parsing that modifies input buffers directly to elimi

json-joy is a comprehensive library for building real-time collaborative applications and distributed systems. It provides a robust framework for managing shared JSON-like data structures that automatically merge concurrent edits from multiple users, ensuring consistent state across all replicas without requiring a central coordination server. The project distinguishes itself through a high-performance approach to data handling, utilizing conflict-free replicated data types and logical clock-based synchronization to maintain data integrity. It includes a specialized engine for navigating and

Valibot is a modular, type-safe schema library for validating and parsing structural data in TypeScript environments.

Gson is a Java library designed for the serialization and deserialization of objects into structured text formats. It functions as a reflection-based data mapper, inspecting class structures at runtime to automatically convert memory-resident objects into data representations and reconstruct them back into typed language objects. The library distinguishes itself through a modular type-adapter pattern that allows for custom conversion rules for complex or nested structures. It also provides robust support for production environments by generating build-time metadata and configuration rules, wh

Zod is a TypeScript-first schema declaration and validation library designed to ensure end-to-end data integrity. It functions as a runtime type guard, allowing developers to define complex data structures through a declarative, chainable syntax. By using these schema definitions, the library automatically derives static TypeScript types, eliminating the need for manual type duplication and ensuring that runtime data matches expected application contracts. The library distinguishes itself through functional schema composition, which enables the creation of hierarchical structures by nesting a

TOML is a configuration file format designed for human readability and unambiguous mapping to hash tables. It serves as a standardized language for structured data, enabling consistent parsing and data exchange across diverse programming environments. The format distinguishes itself through a strict type-system specification that ensures data is interpreted identically regardless of the implementation. It utilizes a line-oriented lexical structure that supports both hierarchical organization through bracketed sections and compact inline embedding for nested objects. This approach allows for t

MessagePack implementation for C and C++ / msgpack.orgC/C++

https://github.com/json-c/json-c is the official code repository for json-c. See the wiki for release tarballs for download. API docs at http://json-c.github.io/json-c/

Canonical source repository for LibYAML

Transit is a language-agnostic data interchange format designed for serializing complex data structures between heterogeneous software systems. It provides a standardized protocol that preserves semantic type information during the exchange process, ensuring that data remains consistent when moved across different programming environments. The format distinguishes itself by supporting multiple transport layers, including JSON and MessagePack, while utilizing a caching stream mechanism to reduce payload size by replacing repetitive keys and symbols with short integer references. It features an

Extensible Data Notation is a language-agnostic text format designed for the reliable exchange of structured data and immutable values across diverse programming environments and distributed systems. It provides a standardized way to organize information into hierarchies using collections such as maps, sets, and vectors, ensuring consistent data recognition through the use of symbolic identifiers and keywords. The format distinguishes itself through its support for extensible tagged elements, which allow developers to register custom handlers to interpret domain-specific data structures beyon

Luban is a game configuration toolchain designed to convert spreadsheet-based data into optimized binary formats and type-safe source code for multiple languages. It functions as a comprehensive suite for configuration validation, data serialization pipelines, and code generation to ensure data consistency across different platforms. The system features a multi-language code generator that produces strongly-typed data classes from schemas, eliminating the need for reflection. It includes a localization manager for exporting translated text and assets with locale-specific patching, and a seria

Toon is a data serialization library and toolkit designed to convert complex objects into compact, human-readable formats optimized for large language models. By focusing on token efficiency, the library minimizes the context window footprint of structured data through techniques like key folding and tabular layout optimization. It provides a streaming-capable processor that handles the encoding and decoding of hierarchical data while maintaining structural integrity. The project distinguishes itself through its path-aware transformation pipeline and configurable serialization logic, which al