json.decoder.JSONDecodeError: Expecting ',' delimiter: line 1

json.decoder.JSONDecodeError: Expecting ',' delimiter: line 1 #

The Python "json.decoder.JSONDecodeError: Expecting ',' delimiter: line 1" occurs when we try to parse an invalid JSON string. To solve the error, make sure to escape any double quotes with two backslashes and correct any other errors in the JSON string.

Here is an example of how the error occurs.

main.py

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import json

# ⛔️ json.decoder.JSONDecodeError: Expecting ',' delimiter: line 1 column 31 (char 30)
data = json.loads(
    '{ "employee":{ "name":"Alice \"developer\"" } }'
) # 👆️ did not escape JSON str correctly

Notice that the value of the name key contains double quotes.

If you have double quotes in the string, make sure to escape them using two backslashes.

main.py

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import json

data = json.loads(
    '{ "employee":{ "name":"Alice \\"developer\\"" } }'
)

print(data)  # 👉️ {'employee': {'name': 'Alice "developer"'}}

Alternatively, you can prefix the string with r to indicate that it's a raw string.

main.py

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import json

data = json.loads(
    r'{ "employee":{ "name":"Alice \"developer\"" } }'
)

print(data)  # 👉️ {'employee': {'name': 'Alice "developer"'}}

The error is also caused if we have any syntax errors in the JSON string.

Here is an example of a syntax error due to using colons in a JSON array.

main.py

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import json

# ⛔️ json.decoder.JSONDecodeError: Expecting ',' delimiter: line 1 column 8 (char 7)
data = json.loads(
    '["name": "Alice", "age": 30]'
)

If you meant to declare a JSON array, make sure to separate its elements with a comma.

main.py

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import json

data = json.loads(
    '["name", "Alice", "age", 30]'
)

print(data)  # 👉️ ['name', 'Alice', 'age', 30]

If you meant to declare a set of key-value pairs, wrap them in curly braces.

main.py

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import json

data = json.loads(
    '{"name": "Alice", "age": 30}'
)

print(data)  # 👉️ {'name': 'Alice', 'age': 30}

The fastest way to validate and correct your JSON is to use a JSON validator.

Paste your payload into the form, the validator checks for errors and sometimes directly fixes them.

If you are making an HTTP request and getting invalid JSON data, you have to fix the issue on the backend.

Here is an example of a more complex JSON string.

main.py

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import json

data = json.loads(
    """
    [
      {"id": 1, "name": "Alice", "is_subscribed": true},
      {"id": 2, "name": "Bob", "is_subscribed": false},
      {"id": 3, "name": "Carl", "is_subscribed": true, "address": {"country": "Canada"}}

    ]
    """
)

# 👇️ [{'id': 1, 'name': 'Alice', 'is_subscribed': True}, {'id': 2, 'name': 'Bob', 'is_subscribed': False}, {'id': 3, 'name': 'Carl', 'is_subscribed': True, 'address': {'country': 'Canada'}}]
print(data)

json.decoder.JSONDecodeError: Expecting ',' delimiter: line 1

json.decoder.JSONDecodeError: Expecting ',' delimiter: line 1 #

Borislav Hadzhiev