Can Swift 4's JSONDecoder be used with Firebase Realtime Database?

Question

I am trying to decode data from a Firebase DataSnapshot so that it can be decoded using JSONDecoder.

I can decode this data fine when I use a URL to access it with a

Answer 1

I've converted Firebase Snapshots using JSONDecoder by converting snapshots back to JSON in Data format. Your struct needs to conform to Decodable or Codable. I've done this with SwiftyJSON but this example is using JSONSerialization and it still works.

JSONSnapshotPotatoes {
    "name": "Potatoes",
    "price": 5,
}
JSONSnapshotChicken {
    "name": "Chicken",
    "price": 10,
    "onSale": true
}

struct GroceryItem: Decodable {
    var name: String
    var price: Double
    var onSale: Bool? //Use optionals for keys that may or may not exist
}


Database.database().reference().child("grocery_item").observeSingleEvent(of: .value, with: { (snapshot) in
        guard let value = snapshot.value as? [String: Any] else { return }
        do {
            let jsonData = try JSONSerialization.data(withJSONObject: value, options: [])
            let groceryItem = try JSONDecoder().decode(GroceryItem.self, from: jsonData)

            print(groceryItem)
        } catch let error {
            print(error)
        }
    })

Please note that if your JSON keys are not the same as your Decodable struct. You'll need to use CodingKeys. Example:

JSONSnapshotSpinach {
    "title": "Spinach",
    "price": 10,
    "onSale": true
}

struct GroceryItem: Decodable {
    var name: String
    var price: Double
    var onSale: Bool?

    enum CodingKeys: String, CodingKey {
        case name = "title"

        case price
        case onSale
    }
}

You can find more information on this using Apple Docs here.