jq output into a non json list to use for a loop

I'm sure this has been asked, but I've searched and can't find anything to answer my question...

I'm looking for a simple way to output a json list as a non json list to process using a while loop.. Which means I need to strip the quotes, commas and brackets.. I know I could do it with cut but I'm sure I'm missing an easier way..

Say I'm using an aws command to get a list of resources and then I want to process that list in a while loop...

aws eks list-clusters | jq .clusters | while read cluster; do something; done

Something along these lines.. am I being stupid here?

Solution 1:

Use [] to turn the list into a series of individual strings, and --raw-output / -r to output them without quotes:

With this option, if the filter's result is a string then it will be written directly to standard output rather than being formatted as a JSON string with quotes. This can be useful for making jq filters talk to non-JSON-based systems.

aws eks list-clusters | jq -r '.clusters[]' | while read cluster; do something; done