Looking for a Json Genie alternative without ads?
Json Genie is the most-installed JSON app on Google Play, and for good reason — it does a lot. It also shows ads in the free version, and that is the thing its unhappy reviewers mention most. Here is what your options actually are, written by the developer of one of them.
Short answer
If you like Json Genie and only the ads bother you, Json Genie Premium is a separate paid app ($6.99 on the US Play Store) with no ads and unlimited tabs — it’s the same tool, and the most powerful option.
If you mostly open JSON files to read them and make small edits, Sonnet is free with no ads at all: a collapsible tree, tap-to-edit values, and formatted or minified output, all offline.
Try Sonnet free No ads, no account — takes a few seconds to install.
Json Genie, Json Genie Premium and Sonnet, side by side
| Json Genie | Json Genie Premium | Sonnet | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | $6.99, paid app | Free; optional one-time Pro unlock |
| Ads | Yes | No | No, in any version |
| Tree view | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Edit values, add and delete fields | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Clone, move and reorder entries | Yes | Yes | No |
| Edit as raw text | Yes | Yes | No — the code view is read-only; use it to format, minify, copy or share |
| JSONC (comments) | Yes | Yes | No |
| Several files open in tabs | Yes, limited | Unlimited | No — one document at a time |
| Search | Yes, with key filters | Yes, with key filters | Pro — jump between matches |
| Works offline, no account | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Installs | 5M+ | 10K+ | 500+ (new) |
Json Genie facts are as described on its two Google Play listings (US store), read 13 September 2026. We have not benchmarked Json Genie ourselves; if something here is out of date, tell us and we will fix it.
Why people look for an alternative
We read the most recent 800 Google Play reviews of Json Genie on 13 September 2026. Most reviewers are happy — it holds a 4.0★ rating across more than nineteen thousand ratings. Among the 1- and 2-star reviews, the theme that comes up again and again is ads: full-screen ads while editing, ads when opening a file, ads that are hard to close. One reviewer put it simply:
“Every time I was about to edit something an ad popped up.”
The other recurring complaints are saving (edits that fail to save back to the original file) and files that won’t open. Those are worth knowing about whichever app you choose — see below for how Sonnet handles both.
Which one should you pick?
Stay with Json Genie Premium if…
- you edit JSON as raw text, or work with JSONC config files that contain comments;
- you keep several files open at once, or reorder and clone entries often;
- you rely on search filters like
city: "Austin".
Json Genie Premium does all of that without ads, and paying for it once is a reasonable deal if you use those features.
Try Sonnet if…
- you mostly open JSON files to read them — API responses, exports, configs someone sent you;
- you want to change a value or add a field now and then, not restructure documents;
- you would rather not pay just to stop seeing ads.
Sonnet is deliberately smaller. It opens JSON from your file manager, browser downloads, chat attachments and the share sheet, shows it as a collapsible tree with syntax colours, lets you tap any value to edit it, and flips the code view between formatted and minified. It reads the unquoted keys and 'single quotes' that strict parsers reject, and repairs missing or trailing commas and unclosed brackets when a file opens. Files up to 20 MB open for free, with the tree view for JSON up to about 2 MB; the one-time Pro unlock raises that to 50 MB files and a 30 MB tree, and adds search.
Saving edits back to the original file
This is the thing that trips up JSON editors on Android, because apps only get permission to write to a file if they are given it. In Sonnet, open the file with Open file inside the app: the system file picker grants write access, and Save writes your changes straight back to that same file. A file opened from another app can be saved back only if that app shared it with write permission; otherwise, open it again from inside Sonnet.
How to switch your default JSON app
- Install Sonnet.
- If
.jsonfiles always open in Json Genie, go to Settings → Apps → Json Genie → Open by default and clear its defaults. The wording varies a little between phone makers. - Tap a JSON file in your file manager and choose Sonnet under Open with, then Always.
Not sure which kind of app you need at all? The broader guide compares viewer apps, code editors and online formatters: how to open a JSON file on Android.
Sonnet: the JSON viewer with no ads
Collapsible tree, tap-to-edit, formatted or minified code view and local drafts. Offline, no account, no ads in any version. Free on Google Play.
