The search results for “GSTR-2B JSON to Excel” are full of drag-and-drop pages that look alike. Some convert in your browser; others send the file to a server and hand back a spreadsheet. You cannot tell which from the design of the page, and the difference matters more for a CA or accounts head handling other people's data than for anyone else.
The main guide to GSTR-2B download covers the portal route and the file options.
What is inside the file you are about to upload
A monthly GSTR-2B file for a trading business holds every registered supplier by GSTIN and trade name, each invoice number and date, the taxable value and the CGST, SGST or IGST on it, and the ITC availability flag. For a practice handling many clients it is the same information times the number of clients. That is a map of who supplies whom and at what value. The portal already holds this information; the point is that the copy in your downloads folder is your client's commercial information, and where another copy ends up is yours to explain.
There is also an accuracy reason to be careful. Section 16(2)(aa) of the CGST Act ties the ITC claim to the invoice details being communicated to you in GSTR-2B, so the file is the record your reconciliation rests on. A converter that quietly drops rows undermines that record without any error message.
Two kinds of converter, and how to tell them apart
A local converter reads the file with JavaScript on your own machine. A server converter receives it, processes it elsewhere and returns the result, often as a download link. Two quick tests separate them.
The offline test
- Load the converter page fully while you are online.
- Turn off your connection (Wi-Fi off or airplane mode).
- Choose your file and convert. If a spreadsheet still comes out, the conversion happened on your device. If it fails or spins forever, treat that as a warning and look closer, because a file may have been on its way somewhere.
The network test
In Chrome or Edge press F12, open the Network tab, then convert a file. A request whose size is close to the size of your file, sent to the site, is an upload. Small requests are usually analytics or fonts; they are not your invoices, but a page that does not say what they are is a page to leave.
Try both on your own business's file first, not on a client's. And note the retention clue: if the tool gives you a download link that works later or from another device, the file was stored.
What a converter must keep
GSTN lists B2B, B2BA, CDNR and CDNRA among the tables of GSTR-2B, and your file may hold more. A converter is only useful if it carries every section in your file across, unchanged.
| Must keep | What goes wrong if it does not | How to test |
|---|---|---|
| Every section, labelled | Amendments and credit or debit notes vanish; the sheet looks complete but is short | Compare row counts per section with the file's own section list or the portal totals |
| Invoice numbers as text | 000452 becomes 452; matching against your books fails | Look for an invoice with leading zeros or a slash |
| Dates as real dates | Day and month swap, or half the column is text | Check a date with a day above 12 and one below |
| Original number on amendments | You cannot explain why an amended invoice matches an old entry | Open a B2BA row |
| The ITC availability flag | The flag is lost and you cannot separate rows later | Check that the flag column is present in the output |
| All amounts at full precision | Paise dropped, totals drift by a few rupees | Sum tax and compare with the portal |
Worked example: the control-total test
Suppose your portal Excel for the month shows the counts below (made-up figures). You convert the JSON with two different converters and set the outputs beside the file. Converter A reports “Conversion successful” and shows only the first section.
| Section | Rows in your file | Tax in your file | Converter A output | Converter B output |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B2B | 214 | ₹4,86,300 | 214 rows, ₹4,86,300 | 214 rows, ₹4,86,300 |
| B2BA | 6 | ₹12,450 | Missing | 6 rows, ₹12,450 |
| CDNR | 9 | ₹18,720 | Missing | 9 rows, ₹18,720 |
| Total | 229 | ₹5,17,470 | 214 rows, ₹4,86,300 | 229 rows, ₹5,17,470 |
Converter A is short by 15 rows and ₹31,170 (6 amendments and 9 notes; ₹12,450 plus ₹18,720). Nothing on its screen said so. You would reconcile against a partial 2B, report amended invoices as missing and never see the credit notes. The test costs two minutes: count rows and total the tax per section, then compare with the portal before you use any output.
A checklist to judge a converter
- Where does it run? Pass the offline test, or show a clear statement of how the file is handled that matches what the Network tab shows.
- What happens to the file afterwards? A tool that keeps files for a set period so you can download again has stored your client's data, and one that says nothing about deletion may have done the same.
- Does it need an account, email or portal credentials? It should need none. A converter has no reason to ask for your GST portal username, password or OTP; if it does, close the page.
- Does it keep every section? Ask it, or test it as above, before you trust a file it produced.
- Are text and date types preserved? Check one leading-zero invoice and one date with a day above 12.
- Does it show what it read? A row count and a total per section let you run the control-total test in seconds.
- Who runs it? A named organisation with a privacy statement is better than an anonymous page with advertising around the upload box.
Red flags: a request for your GST portal login, an email wall before the download, “files stored for later download”, no statement about where the file is processed, output that is a single sheet with no section column, and any claim of perfect accuracy without saying which sections are read.
When you do not need a converter
Three routes keep the file on your machine without trusting a new site. First, if you can log in for that GSTIN, generate the Excel version of the same GSTR-2B; the portal download guide and the Excel guide show the steps and the tabs. Second, Excel for Windows can load a JSON file itself through Data, Get Data, From File, From JSON, and flatten the lists with Power Query; it runs on your computer. Third, if the end goal is matching against your purchase register, skip Excel: a browser-based reconciliation tool can read the JSON directly. If you go the spreadsheet route, reconciling GSTR-2B in Excel covers what to do next, and the invoice number guide explains why text and punctuation matter.
If your 2B was downloaded before you changed IMS actions and recomputed, convert a fresh file instead; recomputing is possible before you file GSTR-3B, and an older file will not show the change. For the client-data side of this argument, the data privacy guide goes deeper.
Judge us by the same tests
We publish a reconciliation tool, so weigh our view accordingly and run the offline and network tests on our page too. It reads the GSTR-2B Excel or JSON directly. Your GSTR-2B and purchase register files are read in your browser and never uploaded to any server. The site uses standard analytics to count visits; that never includes your files.
Frequently asked questions
Is it safe to upload a GSTR-2B JSON to a free online converter?
Only if you have confirmed the conversion runs in your browser. Run the offline test in this guide first. If the page cannot show you where the file goes, assume it is sent to a server and do not use it for a client's file.
Does a converter need my GST portal login?
No. A converter only needs the file you already downloaded. Any tool that asks for your GST portal username, password or OTP to convert a file should be closed immediately.
Which sections should the Excel output contain?
Every section in your file. GSTN lists B2B, B2BA, CDNR and CDNRA among the tables of GSTR-2B, so a converter that outputs only B2B has dropped amendments and credit or debit notes. Compare row counts and tax totals per section before you use the output.
Related guides
- GSTR-2B download: the portal route and the file options
- GSTR-2B JSON to Excel: converting the JSON file to Excel
- GSTR-2B JSON to Excel conversion guide
- How to use a GSTR-2B reconciliation tool
- GSTR-2B not generated or not showing: what to check and what to do
- How to fix excel to json error in GSTR-1 offline tool: troubleshooting guide
- Quarterly GSTR-2B cutoff date for QRMP scheme: Rule 60(7) timeline and matching guide
Last checked: 30 Sep 2026. Sources: Notification 39/2021-Central Tax (Section 16(2)(aa)), GSTN FAQ on GSTR-2B tables, GSTN IMS FAQ.