As far as I can tell (in December 2013) ...

  • Douglas Crockford's master source repository for "json.org" is now on GitHub - https://github.com/douglascrockford/JSON-java. (The GIT history starts in 2010, and the latest change in "master" is a couple of weeks ago.)

  • Paul Merlin (aka "eskatos") has Mavenized the code: https://github.com/eskatos/org.json-java

  • Binary "org.json" JAR files are "regularly" built from Paul Merlin's tree and pushed to Maven Central. You can find them via the "here" link in Paul's README.md file; see the line above.

  • There are other older (pre-2010) binary releases of the "org.json" JAR file in Maven Central under various guises; review the search results for this link" http://mvnrepository.com/search.html?query=org.json.

The copyright dates in the "org.json" source code don't mean much. They clearly aren't updated when the code is updated. However, Douglas Crockford does update the @version javadoc tags, at least in some commits.

UPDATE (December 2016)

As of some time in 2015, Douglas Crockford has passed ownership of the Github repository to Sean Leary. The old Github URL for the project now redirects to https://github.com/stleary/JSON-java. The project continues to be relatively active.

See also: Where has json.org java library gone?

Answer from Stephen C on Stack Overflow
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SourceForge
sourceforge.net › projects › json-lib
Json-lib download | SourceForge.net
Download Json-lib for free. Development of this library has been moved to https://github.com/kordamp/json-lib/ Json-lib is a java library for transforming beans, maps, collections, java arrays and XML to JSON and back again to beans and DynaBeans. It is based on the work by Douglas Crockford ...
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GitHub
github.com › stleary › JSON-java
GitHub - stleary/JSON-java: A reference implementation of a JSON package in Java. · GitHub
The JSON-Java package is a reference implementation that demonstrates how to parse JSON documents into Java objects and how to generate new JSON documents from the Java classes.
Starred by 4.7K users
Forked by 2.6K users
Languages   Java
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Jar-Download
jar-download.com › home › org.json
Download org.json JAR files with all dependencies
Download org.json JAR files ✓ With dependencies ✓ Documentation ✓ Source code
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SourceForge
sourceforge.net › projects › json-java.mirror
JSON-java download | SourceForge.net
December 24, 2025 - Download JSON-java for free. A reference implementation of a JSON package in Java. JSON is a light-weight language-independent data interchange format. The JSON-Java package is a reference implementation that demonstrates how to parse JSON documents ...
Top answer
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26

As far as I can tell (in December 2013) ...

  • Douglas Crockford's master source repository for "json.org" is now on GitHub - https://github.com/douglascrockford/JSON-java. (The GIT history starts in 2010, and the latest change in "master" is a couple of weeks ago.)

  • Paul Merlin (aka "eskatos") has Mavenized the code: https://github.com/eskatos/org.json-java

  • Binary "org.json" JAR files are "regularly" built from Paul Merlin's tree and pushed to Maven Central. You can find them via the "here" link in Paul's README.md file; see the line above.

  • There are other older (pre-2010) binary releases of the "org.json" JAR file in Maven Central under various guises; review the search results for this link" http://mvnrepository.com/search.html?query=org.json.

The copyright dates in the "org.json" source code don't mean much. They clearly aren't updated when the code is updated. However, Douglas Crockford does update the @version javadoc tags, at least in some commits.

UPDATE (December 2016)

As of some time in 2015, Douglas Crockford has passed ownership of the Github repository to Sean Leary. The old Github URL for the project now redirects to https://github.com/stleary/JSON-java. The project continues to be relatively active.

See also: Where has json.org java library gone?

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10

I would recommend using json-simple or one of the other JSON libraries for Java that have developed. This has features the JSON.org API lacks (and I think it will stay that way).

For instance, the json-simple version of JSONObject implements Map and JSONArray implements List. It also has other features, like a SAX-style API.

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SourceForge
json-lib.sourceforge.net
Maven - Json-lib::Welcome
json-lib-x.x-jdk15 is compatible with JDK 1.5, includes support for Enums in JSONArray and JSONObject. Please reffer to the appropriate javadoc links available in the project menu.
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Maven Repository
mvnrepository.com › artifact › org.json › json
Maven Repository: org.json » json
December 24, 2025 - There are a large number of JSON packages in Java. Perhaps someday the Java community will standardize on one. Until then, choose carefully. ... aar android apache api arm assets build build-system bundle client clojure cloud config cran data database eclipse example extension framework github gradle groovy io ios javascript jvm kotlin library logging maven mobile module npm osgi persistence plugin resources rlang sdk server service spring sql starter testing tools ui web webapp
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Maven Repository
mvnrepository.com › artifact › org.json › json › 20140107
Maven Repository: org.json » json » 20140107
January 7, 2014 - JSON is a light-weight, language independent, data interchange format. See http://www.JSON.org/ The files in this package implement JSON encoders/decoders in Java. It also includes the capability to convert between JSON and XML, HTTP headers, Cookies, and CDL.
Published   Jan 07, 2014
Version   20140107
Find elsewhere
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Oracle
download.oracle.com › otndocs › jcp › json_p-1_1-final-spec › index.html
JSR-000374 Java API for JSON Processing 1.1 Specification Final Release
Download Instruction: Click the product name or the file name to start the download · If you need assistance with downloads, please contact the JCP PMO. For all other JCP related questions, please see our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
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Bolerio
bolerio.github.io › mjson
Mjson
Mjson : Lean JSON Library for Java, with a compact, elegant API.
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Java2s
java2s.com › Code › Jar › j › Downloadjavajsonjar.htm
java json - Jar File Download
java2s.com | Email: | © Demo Source and Support. All rights reserved
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Cliftonlabs
cliftonlabs.github.io › json-simple
json-simple
The json-simple library is meant to be a free lightweight utility for deserializing and serializing Javascript Object Notation (JSON). It aims to be easy to learn and use with a friendly license. Download json-simple's latest release jar, javadocs, and source.
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Maven Repository
mvnrepository.com › open-source › json-libraries
Maven Repository: JSON Libraries
See http://www.JSON.org/ The files in this package implement JSON encoders/decoders in Java. ... aar android apache api arm assets build build-system bundle client clojure cloud config cran data database eclipse example extension framework github gradle groovy io ios javascript jvm kotlin library logging maven mobile module npm osgi persistence plugin resources rlang sdk server service spring sql starter testing tools ui web webapp
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GitHub
github.com › google › gson
GitHub - google/gson: A Java serialization/deserialization library to convert Java Objects into JSON and back · GitHub
A Java serialization/deserialization library to convert Java Objects into JSON and back - google/gson
Starred by 24.3K users
Forked by 4.4K users
Languages   Java
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Google Code
code.google.com › archive › p › json-simple › downloads
Google Code Archive - Long-term storage for Google Code Project Hosting.
Archive · Skip to content · The Google Code Archive requires JavaScript to be enabled in your browser · Google · About Google · Privacy · Terms
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Google Groups
groups.google.com › g › comp.lang.java.help › c › 8rKxFs5CFAI
where to download org.json package...
> > but I can't find a json.zip download file at json.org.. upon searching > for "org.json download" I find lots of entries, at drupal, etc.. but I'd > rather download the package from json.org since packages at other places > might include other/different/extra clases.. Gee, I went to <http://www.json.org/> and didn't have trouble finding · <http://www.json.org/java/json.zip> <http://www.json.org/java/org.json.me.zip> <http://json-lib.sourceforge.net/> <http://developer.berlios.de/projects/jsontools/>
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Jar-download
jar-download.com
Download java.json JAR files with all dependencies
Download JAR files for java.json ✓ With dependencies ✓ Documentation ✓ Source code