🚀 make-json-to-env

The ultimate zero-dependency CLI tool to transform complex, nested JSON into clean, production-ready .env files.

💡 Why make-json-to-env?

Most JSON-to-ENV converters stop at the first level or handle arrays poorly. make-json-to-env was built to solve the "Deep Config" problem. Whether you have a 10-level nested Firebase config or a simple flat JSON, this tool generates a standard, predictable .env structure that works with dotenv, Docker, and Shell scripts.

🔥 Features

• ⚡ Ultra-Lightweight – Zero dependencies. It uses native Node.js fs and path modules.
• 🌳 Infinite Recursion – No depth limits. It flattens deep objects into a PARENT_CHILD_KEY convention.
• 🔢 Intelligent Array Mapping – Converts arrays into indexed variables (e.g., TAGS_0, TAGS_1).
• 🛡️ Built with TypeScript – Fully type-safe with robust error handling for invalid JSON.
• ⚙️ Prefix Support – Prepend export , SET , or REACT_APP_ to every variable automatically.
• 🚫 Smart Flattening Toggle – Use --no-flatten if you want nested objects to stay as JSON strings.

📦 Installation

Use without installing (Recommended)

npx make-json-to-env config.json

Global Installation

npm install -g make-json-to-env

🛠 Usage & Commands

The tool provides the make-json-to-env command.

1. Basic Conversion

Converts config.json to config.env.

make-json-to-env config.json

2. Using Custom Prefixes

Great for shell scripts or specific frameworks (like Create React App).

make-json-to-env config.json --prefix="export "

3. Disabling Flattening

Keep nested objects as serialized strings.

make-json-to-env data.json --no-flatten

📋 Deep-Flattening Example

Input (settings.json):

{
  "server": {
    "port": 3000,
    "auth": {
      "methods": ["google", "github"],
      "enabled": true
    }
  },
  "log_level": "info"
}

Output (settings.env):

SERVER_PORT=3000
SERVER_AUTH_METHODS_0=google
SERVER_AUTH_METHODS_1=github
SERVER_AUTH_ENABLED=true
LOG_LEVEL=info

🚀 Advanced Flag Reference

| Flag | Type | Description | | --- | --- | --- | | <filename> | string | Required. The path to your JSON source file. | | --prefix | string | Prepend a string to every key (e.g., --prefix="VITE_"). | | --no-flatten | boolean | Stops recursion. Nested objects are saved as JSON strings. |

🛠 Development & Contributing

Contributions are welcome! To set up the project locally:

1. Clone the repo: git clone https://github.com/ajay-vish/make-json-to-env.git
2. Install types: npm install
3. Build from TS: npm run build
4. Test locally: node dist/index.js example.json

📄 License

Distributed under the MIT License. See the LICENSE file for full text.

⭐️ Support

If this tool saved you time, please give it a star on GitHub!