Application Properties vs YAML in Spring Boot

There's a great deal of misinformation about what a YAML based application configuration file can do in Spring Boot compared to the traditional application . properties file. The fact is, the difference is minimal.

Want to turn structured data into lists, maps or inner classes? It works exactly the same way with application YAML and application properties files. So why choose one over the other?

The video goes into a great deal of detail, but you should choose the application properties file format if you need to use the PropertySource annotation.

YAML files don't support it. That's the only key drawback I could find to YAML.

What are the benefits of using YAML in Spring Boot?

Here are the top five benefits of Spring YAML configuration in your Spring Boot applications:

1. It's easier to read, especially for hierarchical data
2. It conforms with key DevOps tools like Docker and Kubernetes
3. There is less repetition in the code, reducing the opportunity for bugs
4. YAML is a superset of JSON so JSON integration is easier
5. You can use advanced YAML features like anchors and aliases

As always, this post is largely just a summary of the full article over on TheServerSide, so if you want to learn more about Java, Spring Boot and everything under the sun about Spring DI and IoC, head over there!