XML Formatter
Beautify your XML data with proper indentation and formatting for better readability.
What is the XML Formatter?
The XML formatter reflows minified or messy XML into a clean, indented tree so the structure is obvious at a glance. It parses your input with a real XML parser (Python's minidom), which means it also checks well-formedness - unclosed tags or stray characters are reported rather than silently mangled.
Paste a SOAP envelope, an RSS feed, an Android layout or any XML document and get back a tidy two-space-indented version ready to read or copy.
How to use the XML formatter
- 1. Type or paste your XML into the Input XML field.
- 2. Click Format XML (or press Ctrl+Enter).
- 3. The indented output appears on the right - use Copy to grab it, Sample for an example, or Clear to reset.
Features
- Pretty-prints XML with consistent two-space indentation.
- Checks well-formedness and reports parse errors.
- Handles attributes, nested elements and declarations.
- Sample, Copy and Clear buttons with a Ctrl+Enter shortcut.
- Free to use, no sign-up.
Common uses
Reading a minified XML config or API response, inspecting a SOAP or RSS payload, tidying an exported feed before committing it, or checking whether a document is well-formed. For converting XML into a token-efficient shape for LLM prompts, see the XML to TOON converter.
Because it parses before it prints, the formatter doubles as a quick well-formedness check: if it refuses to format, the document has a structural problem worth fixing before it reaches your code or a parser downstream.
FAQ
Does it validate my XML?
It checks that the document is well-formed - tags must be properly closed and nested. It does not validate against a DTD or XSD schema.
What indentation does it use?
Two spaces per level. The output is generated by Python's minidom pretty-printer for predictable, consistent nesting.
Why does formatting fail?
The input is not well-formed XML. Unclosed tags, mismatched names or invalid characters will stop the parser, which then reports the problem.
Is my XML uploaded?
Formatting runs on our server, so your XML is sent there to be parsed and is not stored. Do not paste anything sensitive you would rather keep local.