json-encoder

What it is and what it does

json-encoder is a JSON serialization library that uses Python's singledispatch pattern to register type-specific serializers instead of requiring JSONEncoder subclassing. It eliminates the need to pass a custom encoder class to every json.dumps() call and provides built-in handlers for common types like datetime, UUID, and Decimal. The package is not tied to a specific JSON implementation—it can work with the standard library json module, simplejson, ujson, or others.

The library also converts JSON float numbers to Decimal objects during parsing to avoid floating-point precision issues. Developers can register custom serializers for their own types using a simple decorator pattern. However, the package has been abandoned since 2016-09-16 and receives no maintenance, making it a legacy tool that may not work reliably with current Python versions or modern JSON libraries.

Use it for:

• Serialize datetime, date, time, UUID, and Decimal objects to JSON without writing custom encoder classes.
• Register custom serializers for domain-specific types using a decorator pattern instead of subclassing JSONEncoder.
• Switch between json, simplejson, or ujson implementations globally or per-call without changing serialization logic.
• Prevent floating-point precision loss by parsing JSON numbers as Decimal objects.
• Avoid repeating cls=MyEncoder in every json.dumps() call across a codebase.

Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying

Provides JSON serialization with singledispatch-based type handlers instead of JSONEncoder subclassing, with built-in support for time, date, datetime, UUID, and Decimal types.

No. The package is abandoned (last release 2016-09-16) with no maintenance signal, an unclear license, and compatibility only documented through Python 3.5. Modern Python versions and current JSON libraries may not work with it. For new projects, use a maintained alternative or the standard library's JSONEncoder with custom handlers. For legacy codebases already using it, consider migrating.

Install

json-encoder on PyPI

pip install json-encoder

uv add json-encoder

poetry add json-encoder

Installing json-encoder

Before you install

Low install friction with only two runtime dependencies (six and singledispatch). However, the package is abandoned—last release was 2016-09-16, with no maintenance activity since.

License in practice

License status is unclear; no SPDX identifier or raw license text is available in the package metadata. Verify the actual license terms before use in proprietary or copyleft-sensitive projects.

Quickstart

from json_encoder import json
result = json.dumps(data)

# Register custom type handler:
from json_encoder.encoder import json_encoder
@json_encoder.register(MyType)
def encode_mytype(obj):
    return str(obj)

singledispatch is a runtime dependency; for Python < 3.4, singledispatch >= 3.4.0.3 must be installed separately.

Verify before relying

• Whether the package is compatible with modern Python versions beyond 3.5 (last tested version in classifiers).
• Current state of the repository and whether it has been archived or deleted.
• Whether the unclear license is permissive or restrictive, and what the actual license text is.

Package facts

Evidence: json_encoder-0.4.4-py2.py3-none-any.whl

Tags

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