XML Formatter

An XML formatter reindents raw or minified XML into clean, readable output, parsing the document with the browser's built-in DOMParser rather than a custom parser. Accepted input includes any valid XML document, fragment, or configuration file. Parsing preserves comments, CDATA sections, and processing instructions rather than discarding them, and malformed markup is flagged with a specific error message instead of failing silently or returning a blank result. Indentation runs from 1 to 16 spaces per nesting level, defaulting to 2, matching whatever convention a project already follows, and attributes on each element can be sorted alphabetically by name so the same document formats identically regardless of the order attributes were originally written. Formatting also runs automatically a brief pause after typing stops, and input, output, and settings persist between sessions through localStorage, so work in progress survives closing the tab.

Indent size accepts fractional and alternative numeric notations alongside plain integers: fractions such as 3/4, mixed numbers such as 1 1/2, decimals such as 2.5, and scientific notation such as 2e0 all parse, and the result rounds to the nearest whole number of spaces.

Minified or single-line XML hides its structure, and an XML formatter that reindents it exposes the nesting, missing tags, and attribute values that matter during debugging and review. The scenarios below show where consistent indentation and sorted attributes turn dense markup into a document a person can read and compare.

• API Development: Paste raw XML responses from REST or SOAP endpoints to inspect nested elements, verify data structures, and identify missing or malformed tags before integrating with client applications.
• Configuration Management: Format application configuration files such as Maven pom.xml, Spring XML beans, or Android manifest files to ensure consistent indentation across teams and version control systems.
• Data Engineering: Beautify XML data exports from databases, ETL pipelines, or reporting tools to review record structures, validate schema compliance, and prepare documentation for data dictionaries.
• Technical Writing: Format XML code samples for inclusion in technical documentation, tutorials, and API reference guides. Consistent indentation and sorted attributes improve readability for end users.
• Quality Assurance: Compare formatted XML output from different environments or test runs by normalizing indentation and attribute order. Sorted attributes eliminate false positives in diff comparisons caused by attribute reordering.
• Education: Provide students with a quick way to visualize XML document structure. Adjustable indentation helps learners understand nesting depth and parent-child relationships in markup languages.
• DevOps and CI/CD: Validate and format XML pipeline configurations, deployment descriptors, and infrastructure-as-code templates. Ensure that committed files follow team formatting standards before code review.