Format floats with standard json module

Question

I am using the standard json module in python 2.6 to serialize a list of floats. However, I'm getting results like this:

>>> import json
>>> json.dumps([23.67, 23.97, 23.87])
'[23.670000000000002, 23.969999999999999, 23.870000000000001]'

I want the floats to be formated with only two decimal digits. The output should look like this:

>>> json.dumps([23.67, 23.97, 23.87])
'[23.67, 23.97, 23.87]'

I have tried defining my own JSON Encoder class:

class MyEncoder(json.JSONEncoder):
    def encode(self, obj):
        if isinstance(obj, float):
            return format(obj, '.2f')
        return json.JSONEncoder.encode(self, obj)

This works for a sole float object:

>>> json.dumps(23.67, cls=MyEncoder)
'23.67'

But fails for nested objects:

>>> json.dumps([23.67, 23.97, 23.87])
'[23.670000000000002, 23.969999999999999, 23.870000000000001]'

I don't want to have external dependencies, so I prefer to stick with the standard json module.

How can I achieve this?

Answer 1

You can do what you need to do, but it isn't documented:

>>> import json
>>> json.encoder.FLOAT_REPR = lambda f: ("%.2f" % f)
>>> json.dumps([23.67, 23.97, 23.87])
'[23.67, 23.97, 23.87]'

Answer 2

Unfortunately, I believe you have to do this by monkey-patching (which, to my opinion, indicates a design defect in the standard library json package). E.g., this code:

import json
from json import encoder
encoder.FLOAT_REPR = lambda o: format(o, '.2f')

print json.dumps(23.67)
print json.dumps([23.67, 23.97, 23.87])

emits:

23.67
[23.67, 23.97, 23.87]

as you desire. Obviously, there should be an architected way to override FLOAT_REPR so that EVERY representation of a float is under your control if you wish it to be; but unfortunately that's not how the json package was designed:-(.

Answer 3

If you're stuck with Python 2.5 or earlier versions: The monkey-patch trick does not seem to work with the original simplejson module if the C speedups are installed:

$ python
Python 2.5.4 (r254:67916, Jan 20 2009, 11:06:13) 
[GCC 4.2.1 (SUSE Linux)] on linux2
Type "help", "copyright", "credits" or "license" for more information.
>>> import simplejson
>>> simplejson.__version__
'2.0.9'
>>> simplejson._speedups
<module 'simplejson._speedups' from '/home/carlos/.python-eggs/simplejson-2.0.9-py2.5-linux-i686.egg-tmp/simplejson/_speedups.so'>
>>> simplejson.encoder.FLOAT_REPR = lambda f: ("%.2f" % f)
>>> simplejson.dumps([23.67, 23.97, 23.87])
'[23.670000000000002, 23.969999999999999, 23.870000000000001]'
>>> simplejson.encoder.c_make_encoder = None
>>> simplejson.dumps([23.67, 23.97, 23.87])
'[23.67, 23.97, 23.87]'
>>>

Answer 4

import simplejson

class PrettyFloat(float):
    def __repr__(self):
        return '%.15g' % self

def pretty_floats(obj):
    if isinstance(obj, float):
        return PrettyFloat(obj)
    elif isinstance(obj, dict):
        return dict((k, pretty_floats(v)) for k, v in obj.items())
    elif isinstance(obj, (list, tuple)):
        return map(pretty_floats, obj)             
    return obj

print simplejson.dumps(pretty_floats([23.67, 23.97, 23.87]))

emits

[23.67, 23.97, 23.87]

No monkeypatching necessary.