Is this the same as terraform fmt?

It applies the same canonical conventions terraform fmt enforces: 2-space indentation per nesting level, exactly one space around the equals sign in argument assignments, aligned equals within a run of single-line arguments, and collapsed blank lines. It is a structural reformatter rather than the full HashiCorp parser, so for byte-perfect output run terraform fmt in CI as well.

Does my configuration get uploaded anywhere?

No. All formatting runs entirely in your browser with JavaScript. Nothing is sent to a server, so secrets, backend blocks and provider credentials in your file never leave your machine.

Will it break my strings or heredocs?

No. The formatter detects string literals and heredoc (<<EOT) bodies and copies them verbatim, so multi-line scripts, JSON policies and templated values are preserved exactly as written.

Why are my equals signs aligned in some places but not others?

Terraform aligns the equals sign only within a contiguous run of single-line argument assignments at the same nesting level. A blank line, a comment, or a nested block ends the run, so each group of adjacent arguments is aligned independently.

Can I format a whole module at once?

Paste one file at a time. The tool formats whatever HCL you give it, but it does not read your directory. For an entire module, run terraform fmt -recursive locally; this tool is handy for quick one-off cleanups and reviewing snippets.

What is the Terraform HCL Formatter?

Free in-browser Terraform HCL formatter. Paste your .tf configuration and get canonical 2-space indentation, aligned equals signs within argument runs, and collapsed blank lines — the same conventions terraform fmt enforces. Nothing is uploaded; your credentials stay safe. It runs free in your browser on Gera Tools, with nothing uploaded.

Terraform HCL Formatter

Name: Terraform HCL Formatter
Creator: Gera Tools
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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The Terraform HCL Formatter reformats HashiCorp Configuration Language to the canonical style that terraform fmt produces — without installing the Terraform CLI. Paste a .tf file and it returns a tidy version with consistent indentation and aligned arguments, entirely in your browser.

How it works

HCL has a small set of formatting conventions that the official formatter applies deterministically. This tool reproduces the most impactful ones:

2-space indentation for each nesting level. Both { } blocks and [ ] collections increase depth.
Aligned = signs within a contiguous run of single-line argument assignments at the same depth. A blank line, comment, or nested block ends the run, so each group aligns independently.
One space around = in every assignment.
Collapsed blank lines — any run of two or more blank lines becomes a single blank line, and trailing whitespace is stripped.

The reformatter tracks nesting depth by counting brackets while ignoring those inside string literals, and it copies heredoc bodies (<<EOT ... EOT) verbatim so embedded scripts and JSON policies are never disturbed.

Example

Input:

resource "aws_instance" "web" {
ami="ami-123456"
instance_type =   "t3.micro"
}

Output:

resource "aws_instance" "web" {
  ami           = "ami-123456"
  instance_type = "t3.micro"
}

When to use this tool

Quick cleanup: You copied a snippet from documentation or a tutorial and want to normalise the indentation before dropping it into your codebase.
Code review: You are reviewing a pull request and want to confirm that the Terraform changes meet the canonical format without installing the CLI locally.
Sharing config: You are pasting HCL into a ticket, a chat, or a document and want it to look consistent.

For full module formatting in a local working directory, terraform fmt -recursive is the right tool. This formatter handles one file at a time in the browser.

Edge cases to know about

String content is never modified. Multi-line strings, heredoc blocks, and embedded JSON or scripts are copied verbatim. The formatter detects these contexts by tracking when it is inside a quoted string or between <<EOT / EOT markers, and does not apply indentation rules inside them.

Comments follow the surrounding block. Single-line (// or #) and block (/* */) comments are treated as code lines and indented along with the code at their depth.

Mixed-indentation input is handled. Whether your input uses tabs, 2 spaces, or 4 spaces, the output normalises to 2-space indentation. The input indentation is stripped by tracking bracket depth rather than copying existing whitespace.

Alignment runs break at blank lines. If you separate argument groups with a blank line, each group aligns its = signs independently. This matches terraform fmt behaviour and preserves the grouping intent of the original author.

Notes and tips

This is a structural reformatter, not the full HashiCorp parser. For most files the output matches terraform fmt, but for guaranteed byte-perfect formatting keep terraform fmt -check in your CI pipeline. Because everything runs locally, it is safe to paste configuration containing backend blocks or provider settings — nothing is transmitted off your machine.