How to Resolve JSON Decoder Error?

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This JSON Decoder Error: Expecting value: line 1 column 1 (char 0) in Python error typically happens when trying to decode an empty string or a response that isn’t valid JSON. The error suggests that the JSON.loads() function was expecting JSON content but found nothing at the very beginning of the string.

Example:

import json 
response = '' # Empty string 
data = json.loads(response) # Raises JSONDecodeError

Solution:

Make sure the input string isn’t empty.

If you’re making a request (e.g., using requests.get()), check the API response to ensure it returns valid JSON.

Example with valid API call:

try: 
response = requests.get("https://api.example.com/data") 
data = response.json() # This works if response contains valid JSON 
except requests.exceptions.RequestException as e: 
print(f"Error: {e}") 
except json.JSONDecodeError: 
print("Error: Invalid JSON response")

This error can often be fixed by checking the actual content being passed to the json.loads() method or inspecting API responses for empty or malformed data.

About Author

Jayanti Katariya is the CEO of Moon Technolabs, a fast-growing IT solutions provider, with 18+ years of experience in the industry. Passionate about developing creative apps from a young age, he pursued an engineering degree to further this interest. Under his leadership, Moon Technolabs has helped numerous brands establish their online presence and he has also launched an invoicing software that assists businesses to streamline their financial operations.