Dasel v3

Dasel (Data-Select) is a CLI tool for querying, modifying, and converting structured data files using a consistent query syntax across formats.

Docs are bundled in references/. Read them when you need deeper detail on a topic.

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CLI basics

# Read from stdin, specify input format
echo '{"name":"Tom"}' | dasel -i json 'name'
# => "Tom"

# Read from a file via stdin redirection
dasel -i yaml 'database.host' < config.yaml

# Convert formats: read JSON, output YAML
cat data.json | dasel -i json -o yaml

# Output the whole document (needed when modifying)
echo '{"a":1}' | dasel -i json --root 'a = 2'
# => {"a": 2}

Key flags:

Flag	Short	Purpose
--in FORMAT	-i	Input format (json, yaml, toml, xml, csv, hcl, ini)
--out FORMAT	-o	Output format
--root		Output the full document, not just the selected value
--var name=fmt:file:path		Pass a file as a named variable
--read-flag key=val		Parser-specific read options
--write-flag key=val		Parser-specific write options
--config PATH	-c	Path to dasel config file (default: ~/dasel.yaml)
--unstable		Enable unstable/experimental features

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Query syntax

Queries are dot-chained accessors and function calls, terminated with ; when using multiple statements.

# Access nested fields
user.address.city

# Array index (zero-based)
users[0].name

# Range slice
users[0:4]

# Assign (modifies the value in the document)
user.name = "Alice"

# Variables - $root is stdin, $this is current element
$root.users.filter(active == true).map(name)

Multi-statement queries (use ; to separate, last statement is the output):

$active = $root.users.filter(active == true);
$active.map(name)

Environment variables

GREETING=hello NAME=tom dasel '$GREETING + " " + $NAME'
# => "hello tom"

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Common patterns

Read a value

echo '{"foo":{"bar":"baz"}}' | dasel -i json 'foo.bar'
# => "baz"

Modify a value (output full document)

echo '{"foo":"old"}' | dasel -i json --root 'foo = "new"'
# => {"foo": "new"}

Edit a file in place

dasel -i yaml --root 'server.port = 9090' < config.yaml > config.yaml.tmp \
  && mv config.yaml.tmp config.yaml

Note: there is no -f flag for data files in v3. Always use stdin (< file or cat file |). Note: always go via a temp file — bash truncates the target before dasel reads it.

Filter an array

echo '{"users":[{"name":"Alice","active":true},{"name":"Bob","active":false}]}' \
  | dasel -i json 'users.filter(active == true).map(name)'
# => ["Alice"]

Map / transform

echo '[1,2,3]' | dasel -i json 'map($this * 2)'
# => [2, 4, 6]

Modify elements in place with each

echo '[1,2,3]' | dasel -i json 'each($this = $this + 1)'
# => [2, 3, 4]

Default / coalesce

# Fall back to a default if path missing
dasel -f config.yaml 'server.timeout ?? 30'

Conditional

dasel -f data.json 'if(count > 5) { "many" } else { "few" }'

Recursive descent — find all values by key

# All values with key "name" at any depth
dasel -f data.json '..name'

# All values at any depth
dasel -f data.json '..*'

Predicate-based deep search

dasel -f data.json 'search(has("id") && has("name"))'

Format conversion

cat file.json | dasel -i json -o yaml
cat file.yaml | dasel -i yaml -o toml

Build a new object

echo '{"first":"Tom","last":"Wright"}' \
  | dasel -i json '{"fullName": first + " " + last}'

Spread operator

# Merge objects
echo '{"a":1}' | dasel -i json '{$this..., "b": 2}'
# => {"a":1,"b":2}

# Append to array
echo '[1,2,3]' | dasel -i json '[$this..., 4, 5]'
# => [1,2,3,4,5]

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Supported formats

Format	Read	Write	Notes
json	✓	✓
yaml	✓	✓
xml	✓	✓	See --read-flag xml-mode=structured
csv	✓	✓	All values as strings; --read-flag csv-delimiter=;
hcl	✓	✓	--read-flag hcl-block-format=array
toml	✓	✓	Generally working; unsorted maps
ini	✓	✓	Basic sections + key values only

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Key functions

Function	Description	Example
filter(pred)	Filter array by predicate	arr.filter($this > 1)
map(expr)	Transform each element	arr.map($this * 2)
each(expr)	Iterate and modify in place	arr.each($this = $this+1)
search(pred)	Recursive predicate search	search(has("key"))
has(key)	Check key/index exists	has("name")
len(x)	Length of array/string	len($root.items)
keys(obj)	Keys of a map	keys($root.config)
add(a,b)	Add / concatenate	add(1, 2)
join(arr, sep)	Join array to string	join(tags, ",")
replace(str,old,new)	String replace	replace(name,"_"," ")
sortBy(key)	Sort array of objects	users.sortBy(name)
reverse(arr)	Reverse array	reverse(items)
min(arr) / max(arr)	Min/max of numbers	min(scores)
sum(arr)	Sum numbers	sum(prices)
toString(x)	Convert to string	toString(id)
toInt(x)	Convert to int	toInt(count)
typeOf(x)	Type name	typeOf(value)
parse(fmt, str)	Parse a string as a format	parse("json", raw)
readFile(path)	Read a file	readFile("x.json")
base64e(str)	Base64 encode	base64e(token)
base64d(str)	Base64 decode	base64d(encoded)

For full function signatures and examples, see references/functions.md.

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Reference files

File	When to read
references/syntax.md	Deep dive: types, arrays, objects, conditionals, spread, coalesce, branches, regex, recursive descent
references/functions.md	All function signatures with examples
references/input-output.md	Stdin/stdout, file editing, variables, format flags

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Tips

• Always use --root when modifying data and wanting the full document back.
• Use ; to write multi-statement queries for clarity.
• $root is the stdin document; $this is the current element inside functions.
• For in-place file edits, always redirect to a .tmp file first, then mv.
• The ternary operator (? :) is not yet implemented — use if/else form instead.
• branch is unstable — requires --unstable flag.