What it is
jq is a command-line processor for JSON. It pretty-prints JSON, pulls out the fields you want, and transforms data with a small filter language, which makes it the standard way to work with API responses and JSON files in scripts.
curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/jqlang/jq | jq '.stargazers_count'
Why it’s here
- JSON everywhere. APIs and many tools output JSON, and jq makes it readable.
- Scriptable. Shell scripts use it to pick values out of JSON.
On CoreDesktop
jq is installed from pacman. CoreDesktop’s own scripts use it too, for example configure reads Tailscale’s status with it. update keeps jq current along with the rest of the pacman packages.