# Install cfn-flip with Homebrew Convert AWS CloudFormation templates between JSON and YAML formats. Version 1.3.0 via Homebrew; verified from local package data. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:cfn-flip ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install cfn-flip ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:cfn-flip - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Package manager page:** - **Version:** 1.3.0 - **Source summary:** Convert AWS CloudFormation templates between JSON and YAML formats - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Upstream docs:** - **License:** Apache-2.0 - **Source archive:** - **Generated:** 2026-07-08T07:18:31+00:00 ## Executables - cfn-flip (cli) - cfn-flip (alias) ## Dependencies - libyaml - python@3.14 ## Install behavior - Post-install hook: not defined - Bottle: available on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux ## Freshness - Page generated: 2026-07-08 - Package-manager version: 1.3.0 - Local data: ok - Upstream repository: https://github.com/awslabs/aws-cfn-template-flip - info: No package-manager update timestamp was available. - info: No cached GitHub release or tag data was available. ## Project history and usage AWS CloudFormation Template Flip is an AWS Labs Python tool and library for converting CloudFormation templates between JSON and YAML while using short-form YAML intrinsic-function syntax where possible. ### Project history The official README explains the name as an homage to the Unix `flip` utility and documents both the `cfn-flip` command and the `cfn_flip` Python package API. The repository metadata records the public repo creation in 2016. ### Adoption history The project is packaged for Homebrew as `cfn-flip` and distributed as a Python package. Its README now deprecates CLI usage in favor of `rain fmt`, while explicitly saying the Python API may continue to be used. ### How it is used The documented CLI reads from stdin or files and converts JSON to YAML or YAML to JSON. The Python API exposes `flip`, `to_yaml`, and `to_json` for applications that need CloudFormation template serialization. ### Why package nerds care cfn-flip is significant because it solved a very specific packaging annoyance: CloudFormation users wanted a reliable converter that preserved AWS intrinsic-function syntax instead of treating templates as generic JSON/YAML. ### Timeline - 2016: GitHub repository metadata records public repository creation. - 2021: GitHub release metadata records cfn_flip 1.3.0. - Current README: CLI usage is deprecated in favor of `rain fmt`; package API remains available. ### Related projects - rain is the recommended replacement for CLI formatting and conversion. - cf2tf acknowledges cfn-flip as a parser used when converting CloudFormation templates. ### Sources - - - - - ## Security Notes infrastructure mutation or orchestration signal. - **Geiger risk:** orange / medium - infrastructure mutation or orchestration signal ## Source Database Details - **Source Database:** Homebrew formula API - **Tap:** homebrew/core - **Full Name:** cfn-flip - **Version Scheme:** 0 - **Revision:** 2 - **Bottle Stable Root URL:** - **Deprecated:** no - **Disabled:** no - **Keg Only:** no - **URL Keys:** stable ## Related links - [Cloud CLI packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/cloud-clis/) - Belongs to a cloud or infrastructure command family. - [Source-control packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/source-control-tools/) - Belongs to a source-control command family. - [Secret-risk packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/secret-risk-packages/) - Has protected-tool coverage, approval-gate, or non-low Geiger security signals. - [Terminal utility packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/terminal-utilities/) - Matched terminal and command-line workflow metadata. - [python@3.14](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/python-3-14/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [cfn-format](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/cfn-format/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: aws, cli, cloud-infrastructure, cloudformation. - [cfnctl](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/cfnctl/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: aws, cli, cloud-infrastructure, cloudformation. - [cfv](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/cfv/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: aws, cli, cloud-infrastructure, cloudformation. - [cloudformation-cli](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/cloudformation-cli/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: aws, cli, cloud-infrastructure, cloudformation. - [eksctl](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/eksctl/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: aws, cli, cloud-infrastructure, cloudformation. - [basti](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/basti/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: aws, cli, cloud-infrastructure. - [e1s](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/e1s/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: aws, cli, cloud-infrastructure. - [gimme](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gimme/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: aws, cli, cloud-infrastructure. ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/cfn-flip.yml](https://github.com/automic-vault/db/blob/main/combined/cfn-flip.yml) ## Sources - Nucleus package database - Geiger risk classifier - package-page enrichment - curated package history - package version freshness - av.db category and tag curation - package relationship graph - cross-ecosystem install command graph