DevEquiv

    PHP json_encode() Equivalent in Python

    Python's json.dumps() serializes to JSON just like PHP's json_encode(), but PHP's associative-vs-sequential array ambiguity (does it become a JSON object or array?) has no equivalent guesswork in Python, since dicts and lists are always distinct types.

    Close equivalent

    PHP source
    json_encode()
    Closest Python API
    json.dumps()

    Main limitation: PHP arrays are a single type used for both lists and maps; `json_encode()` decides whether to emit a JSON array or object based on whether the array's keys are sequential integers starting at 0. Python's `json.dumps()` never has to guess — a `dict` always becomes a JSON object and a `list` always becomes a JSON array.

    How to use each function

    Before comparing the two, here's how json_encode() and json.dumps() work on their own.

    PHP: json_encode()

    json_encode(mixed $value, int $flags = 0, int $depth = 512): string|false

    Serializes a PHP value to a JSON string. Whether an array becomes a JSON object or array depends entirely on its keys — sequential integer keys starting at 0 produce a JSON array, anything else produces an object. Forward slashes and non-ASCII characters are escaped by default unless JSON_UNESCAPED_SLASHES / JSON_UNESCAPED_UNICODE are set.

    Returns: A JSON string, or false on failure.

    PHP 
    json_encode(["name" => "Ada", "age" => 30]);
// '{"name":"Ada","age":30}'

    Python: json.dumps()

    json.dumps(obj, *, ensure_ascii=True, indent=None, ...)

    Serializes a Python object to a JSON string. A dict always becomes a JSON object and a list always becomes a JSON array — there's no key-shape ambiguity like PHP's array. Non-ASCII characters are escaped by default; pass ensure_ascii=False to emit raw UTF-8.

    Returns: A JSON-formatted string.

    Python 
    import json
json.dumps({"name": "Ada", "age": 30})
# '{"name": "Ada", "age": 30}'

    Quick mapping

    PHP json_encode()
    Closest Python API json.dumps()

    How it differs

    • PHP arrays are a single type used for both lists and maps; json_encode() decides whether to emit a JSON array or object based on whether the array's keys are sequential integers starting at 0. Python's json.dumps() never has to guess — a dict always becomes a JSON object and a list always becomes a JSON array.
    • PHP's json_encode() escapes forward slashes (/ becomes \/) by default, requiring the JSON_UNESCAPED_SLASHES flag to disable it; Python's json.dumps() never escapes forward slashes — there is no equivalent flag needed because it never does this in the first place.
    • PHP's json_encode() escapes non-ASCII Unicode characters as \uXXXX by default, needing JSON_UNESCAPED_UNICODE to output raw UTF-8; Python's json.dumps() does the same ASCII-escaping by default, and needs ensure_ascii=False to output raw Unicode — both languages default to escaping, just with a different flag name.

    Examples

    Encoding a list (sequential array / list)

    PHP 
    json_encode([1, 2, 3]);
// "[1,2,3]"
    Python 
    json.dumps([1, 2, 3])
# '[1, 2, 3]'
    Both produce a JSON array; Python adds spaces after commas by default, which is a formatting difference, not a structural one.

    Encoding a map (associative array / dict)

    PHP 
    json_encode(["name" => "Ada", "age" => 30]);
// {"name":"Ada","age":30}
    Python 
    json.dumps({"name": "Ada", "age": 30})
# '{"name": "Ada", "age": 30}'
    PHP's associative array becomes a JSON object because its keys aren't sequential integers; Python's dict is unambiguously always a JSON object, with no key-shape inspection involved.

    Edge cases

    Edge case

    An empty PHP array ([]) is ambiguous — json_encode([]) produces [] (a JSON array) because an empty array is considered sequential by definition; if you intended an empty object, you need json_encode((object) []) or json_encode([], JSON_FORCE_OBJECT). Python has no such ambiguity: json.dumps({}) is always {} and json.dumps([]) is always [].

    References

    • PHP Manual — json_encode — checked 2026-07-29
    • Python docs — json.dumps() (v3.x) — checked 2026-07-29

    Last verified 2026-07-29.