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nlohmann::basic_json::value_t

enum class value_t : std::uint8_t {
    null,
    object,
    array,
    string,
    boolean,
    number_integer,
    number_unsigned,
    number_float,
    binary,
    discarded
};

This enumeration collects the different JSON types. It is internally used to distinguish the stored values, and the functions is_null, is_object, is_array, is_string, is_boolean, is_number (with is_number_integer, is_number_unsigned, and is_number_float), is_discarded, is_binary, is_primitive, and is_structured rely on it.

Notes

Ordering

The order of types is as follows:

  1. null
  2. boolean
  3. number_integer, number_unsigned, number_float
  4. object
  5. array
  6. string
  7. binary

discarded is unordered.

Types of numbers

There are three enumerators for numbers (number_integer, number_unsigned, and number_float) to distinguish between different types of numbers:

Comparison operators

operator< and operator<=> (since C++20) are overloaded and compare according to the ordering described above. Until C++20 all other relational and equality operators yield results according to the integer value of each enumerator. Since C++20 some compilers consider the rewritten candidates generated from operator<=> during overload resolution, while others do not. For predictable and portable behavior use:

  • operator< or operator<=> when wanting to compare according to the order described above
  • operator== or operator!= when wanting to compare according to each enumerators integer value

Examples

Example

The following code how type() queries the value_t for all JSON types.

#include <iostream>
#include <nlohmann/json.hpp>

using json = nlohmann::json;

int main()
{
    // create JSON values
    json j_null;
    json j_boolean = true;
    json j_number_integer = -17;
    json j_number_unsigned = 42u;
    json j_number_float = 23.42;
    json j_object = {{"one", 1}, {"two", 2}};
    json j_array = {1, 2, 4, 8, 16};
    json j_string = "Hello, world";

    // call type()
    std::cout << std::boolalpha;
    std::cout << (j_null.type() == json::value_t::null) << '\n';
    std::cout << (j_boolean.type() == json::value_t::boolean) << '\n';
    std::cout << (j_number_integer.type() == json::value_t::number_integer) << '\n';
    std::cout << (j_number_unsigned.type() == json::value_t::number_unsigned) << '\n';
    std::cout << (j_number_float.type() == json::value_t::number_float) << '\n';
    std::cout << (j_object.type() == json::value_t::object) << '\n';
    std::cout << (j_array.type() == json::value_t::array) << '\n';
    std::cout << (j_string.type() == json::value_t::string) << '\n';
}

Output:

true
true
true
true
true
true
true
true

Version history

  • Added in version 1.0.0.
  • Added unsigned integer type in version 2.0.0.
  • Added binary type in version 3.8.0.
Last update: August 5, 2022