JSONPath Dot Notation ($.key)

Dot Notation in JSONPath

Dot notation is the most common way to access properties in a JSON object. It uses a period (.) followed by the property name, making expressions concise and readable.

Syntax

$.propertyName
$.parent.child.grandchild

How It Works

Given this JSON document:

{
  "user": {
    "name": "Bob",
    "email": "bob@example.com",
    "address": {
      "city": "Tokyo",
      "zip": "100-0001"
    }
  }
}

• $.user.name returns "Bob"
• $.user.address.city returns "Tokyo"
• $.user.email returns "bob@example.com"

Each dot steps one level deeper into the object hierarchy. You chain as many dots as needed to reach deeply nested values.

Rules and Limitations

1. Property names must be valid identifiers — names with spaces, hyphens, or special characters require bracket notation instead (e.g., $["first-name"]).
2. Case-sensitive — $.User and $.user are different paths.
3. No result for missing keys — if a property does not exist, the expression returns an empty result set rather than an error.

Dot Notation vs. Bracket Notation

Feature	Dot Notation	Bracket Notation
Syntax	$.key	$["key"]
Special chars	Not supported	Supported
Readability	Higher	Lower
Dynamic keys	No	Yes

Dot notation is preferred for simple, clean property names and is the most common form you will encounter in JSONPath tutorials and documentation.