YAML Data Structures

Scalar (Single Value)

name: "Evan"
count: 42
active: true

Array/List (Ordered Values)

Block style:

tags:
  - security
  - linux
  - networking

Inline style:

tags: [security, linux, networking]

Multi-line inline (for long arrays):

backup-codes: [
  11111, 22222, 33333, 44444, 55555,
  66666, 77777, 88888, 99999, 00000
]

Object/Map (Key-Value Pairs)

Block style:

server:
  ip: 10.50.1.20
  port: 443

Inline style:

server: {ip: 10.50.1.20, port: 443}

Nested Structures

Array of objects:

users:
  - name: "Evan"
    role: "admin"
  - name: "Guest"
    role: "readonly"

Object with arrays:

account:
  username: "evan"
  emails: [primary@mail.com, backup@mail.com]
  backup-codes: [
    11111, 22222, 33333, 44444, 55555,
    66666, 77777, 88888, 99999, 00000
  ]

Quick Reference

Symbol Meaning Example

[]

Array/list of values

tags: [a, b, c]

{}

Object with key-value pairs

server: {ip: 1.2.3.4}

-

Block-style list item

- item

key:

Property name

name: "value"

|

Literal block (preserves newlines)

notes: |

>

Folded block (joins lines)

description: >

Style Preferences

For gopass metadata files:

description: "Service name"
url: "https://example.com"
tags: [tag1, tag2, tag3]
usernames: []
emails: []
backup-codes: [
  11111, 22222, 33333, 44444, 55555,
  66666, 77777, 88888, 99999, 00000
]

  • Quoted strings for vim ci" editing

  • Inline arrays [] for compactness

  • Multi-line arrays for readability (5 per row)

  • Empty arrays [] for placeholders

  • No trailing commas before ]

Related