Is there any way to see the MongoDB results in a better format?

Yes, MongoDB provides several methods to display query results in a better, more readable format instead of the default single-line output. The most common approaches are findOne() and find().toArray().

Syntax

// Display single document in formatted JSON
db.collection.findOne();

// Display all documents in formatted JSON array
db.collection.find().toArray();

Sample Data

Let us first create a collection with sample documents ?

db.betterFormatDemo.insertMany([
    {"StudentName": "Adam Smith", "StudentScores": [98, 67, 89]},
    {"StudentName": "John Doe", "StudentScores": [67, 89, 56]},
    {"StudentName": "Sam Williams", "StudentScores": [45, 43, 33]}
]);

{
    "acknowledged": true,
    "insertedIds": [
        ObjectId("5cd7ab826d78f205348bc640"),
        ObjectId("5cd7ab936d78f205348bc641"),
        ObjectId("5cd7aba76d78f205348bc642")
    ]
}

The default find() method displays results in a single line format ?

db.betterFormatDemo.find();

{ "_id": ObjectId("5cd7ab826d78f205348bc640"), "StudentName": "Adam Smith", "StudentScores": [98, 67, 89] }
{ "_id": ObjectId("5cd7ab936d78f205348bc641"), "StudentName": "John Doe", "StudentScores": [67, 89, 56] }
{ "_id": ObjectId("5cd7aba76d78f205348bc642"), "StudentName": "Sam Williams", "StudentScores": [45, 43, 33] }

Method 1: Using findOne()

The findOne() method returns only the first document in a formatted JSON structure ?

db.betterFormatDemo.findOne();

{
    "_id": ObjectId("5cd7ab826d78f205348bc640"),
    "StudentName": "Adam Smith",
    "StudentScores": [
        98,
        67,
        89
    ]
}

Method 2: Using find().toArray()

The find().toArray() method returns all matching documents in a formatted JSON array ?

db.betterFormatDemo.find().toArray();

[
    {
        "_id": ObjectId("5cd7ab826d78f205348bc640"),
        "StudentName": "Adam Smith",
        "StudentScores": [
            98,
            67,
            89
        ]
    },
    {
        "_id": ObjectId("5cd7ab936d78f205348bc641"),
        "StudentName": "John Doe",
        "StudentScores": [
            67,
            89,
            56
        ]
    },
    {
        "_id": ObjectId("5cd7aba76d78f205348bc642"),
        "StudentName": "Sam Williams",
        "StudentScores": [
            45,
            43,
            33
        ]
    }
]

Key Differences

• findOne() returns single document with proper JSON formatting
• find().toArray() returns all documents as a formatted JSON array
• Both methods provide better readability compared to the default cursor output

Conclusion

Use findOne() for formatted single document output and find().toArray() for formatted multi-document results. Both methods significantly improve readability over the default cursor display format.