Numbers in quotes using json_encode()

Question

Various 3rd party companies are forcing us to use non-conventional code and produce non-standard output.

We are using standard json_encode() to output a JSON variable in JS/HTML which looks like:

"custom":{"1":2,"2":7,"3":5}

Now they tell us this isn't working for them, they need it this way:

"custom":{"1":"2","2":"7","3":"5"}

Can I force PHP to wrap quotes arround numbers? Maybe using cast (string) when we build the object before encoding?

Mainly, we need an opposite of the following option bitflag:

JSON_NUMERIC_CHECK (integer)

Encodes numeric strings as numbers. Available since PHP 5.3.3.

But I doubt this exists.

This question is different from the linked question because it doesn't consider `json_encode()` turning strings back into numbers, see https://3v4l.org/YZS0F — Daniel W., Apr 09 '21 at 11:18
@mickmackusa yea but I don't need a solution anymore as I don't work with people anymore who don't accept standards. Look at this RFC that deals with the situation in question: https://wiki.php.net/rfc/json_numeric_as_string — Daniel W., Apr 09 '21 at 11:30
You ran a bad test and unjustly unhammered the dupe. https://3v4l.org/S8nXc `array_map()` does not modify by reference. — mickmackusa, Apr 09 '21 at 11:30

score 3 · Answer 1 · answered Jun 23 '14 at 12:02

3

Guess you need to fix this yourself. I can't think of a built-in function, but you can write your own:

function stringify_numbers($obj) {
    foreach($obj as &$item)
        if(is_object($item) || is_array($item))
            $item = stringify_numbers($item); // recurse!
        if(is_numeric($item)
            $item = (string)$item;
    return $obj;
}

Now you can use json_encode(stringify_numbers($yourObject))

answered Jun 23 '14 at 12:02

nl-x

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`stringify` is not a valid PHP function, is it? I get your concept tho, helpful to me. I was hoping for a simple bitflag that always adds quotes :( – Daniel W. Jun 23 '14 at 12:06
@DanFromGermany stringify was a typo. It's fixed. It was meant to be recursive – nl-x Jun 23 '14 at 12:07
There is a native function to recursively iterate all leafnodes: `array_walk_recursive()`. [Demo](https://stackoverflow.com/a/67023516/2943403) – mickmackusa Apr 09 '21 at 15:23

score 1 · Accepted Answer · edited Apr 09 '21 at 15:30

1

If you're building your json data from a one-dimensional array, you can use

echo json_encode(array_map('strval', $data));

This technique will unconditionally convert all values to strings (including objects, nulls, booleans, etc.).

If your data might be multidimensional, then you'll need to call it recursively.

edited Apr 09 '21 at 15:30

mickmackusa

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answered Jun 23 '14 at 12:02

Miraage

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Numbers in quotes using json_encode()

2 Answers2

Linked