Private by design
Drawings are read in your browser and never uploaded, so client and production files stay on your computer.
Online DXF File Viewer for CAD, Laser and CNC Drawings
Open a DXF from AutoCAD, LibreCAD, Fusion or a laser cutter app. Toggle layers, read the true size and export SVG or PNG. Nothing uploaded.
Drawing units
Drag to pan, scroll or pinch to zoom
Open a DXF to see its layers, size and entity counts.
Make it 3DExtrude this drawing into an STL
Opened in your browser. Files are never uploaded.
Continue with your DXF
Pick the next tool for what you want to do with the drawing.
How to open a DXF file online
Open the drawing, find your way around it, then check the size and export.
- 1
Drop the file
Drag a .dxf onto the tool or click to choose it. A sample mounting plate is already open, so you can try every control first.
- 2
Pan, zoom and toggle layers
Drag to pan, scroll or pinch to zoom, and double click to fit. Switch layers, text and the background to read the drawing clearly.
- 3
Check the size and export
Read the width and height in mm and inches, then download SVG or PNG, or open the drawing in DXF to STL to make a 3D print.
Why use this DXF viewer
The checks a drawing needs before it goes to a cutter, a printer or a client.
Layers and colors
Every layer with content, in its own color, with a count of what is on it. Switch layers on and off to isolate cut lines, engraving or notes.
Real size in mm and inches
Width and height of the visible layers, converted from the drawing units in the file header. Override the unit when the header is missing or wrong.
Entity counts
Lines, arcs, circles, polylines, splines, text and block references counted by type, plus a list of anything that could not be drawn.
SVG and PNG export
Save the visible layers as an SVG at true millimetre size with one group per layer, or as a sharp PNG on a light or dark background.
Text and background
Hide text to see the bare geometry, and switch the canvas between dark, as in CAD, and light. Hidden text stays out of the exports too.
What's inside a DXF file
DXF has carried 2D CAD drawings between programs since the 1980s. Four things worth knowing.
Text built from group codes
A DXF is a long list of numbered codes and values. Most files are ASCII text; the viewer reads those and asks you to save a binary DXF as ASCII.
Exact geometry, not pixels
A circle is stored as a center and a radius, an arc adds its angles and a spline its control points. That is why a DXF scales cleanly for cutting.
Model space and layouts
The real geometry lives in model space, usually at full size, while paper space layouts hold title blocks and print views. The viewer draws model space.
Blocks placed many times
A bolt or symbol is defined once as a block and placed by insert entities with position, scale and rotation. The viewer expands every one.
Who uses a DXF viewer
DXF is the file most cutting machines and CAD programs share.
Laser and vinyl cutter users
Check a downloaded design before cutting: which layers it has, how big it is and whether the text came through.
CNC, plasma and waterjet shops
Open a customer drawing on any shop computer to confirm size and layers before quoting or cutting.
Engineers and contractors
Look at a plan or part drawing sent by email without an AutoCAD license, on a laptop, tablet or phone.
Makers going 3D
Turn a laser file or plate outline into a printable part by sending it from the viewer to DXF to STL.
DXF guide
The format, other ways to open it, units, layers and how it compares with DWG and SVG.
What is a DXF file?
DXF stands for Drawing Exchange Format. Autodesk introduced it with the first release of AutoCAD in 1982 so drawings could move between programs, and it is still the common language of 2D CAD. Most DXF files are plain text: long lists of group codes and values that describe a header, layers, blocks and entities such as lines, arcs, circles, polylines, splines and text.
Laser cutters, CNC routers, plasma tables, waterjets and vinyl cutters all read DXF, which is why so many downloadable designs come in this format. A DXF holds geometry and layers, not toolpaths, so your machine software still decides speed, power and cut order.
How to open a DXF file on Windows, Mac or online
Online, the quickest way is this page. The file is read by JavaScript in your browser, so nothing is sent to a server and there is no account to make. It is a fast way to check a file someone sent you before you open your CAD or laser software.
On Windows, Autodesk DWG TrueView is a free viewer for DWG and DXF files, and LibreCAD and QCAD are free 2D CAD programs that open and edit DXF. A Mac has no built-in DXF viewer and Preview cannot open the format, but LibreCAD, QCAD, FreeCAD and Inkscape all run on macOS and can open or import DXF.
This page
- Runs on
- Any browser
- Can edit
- No, view and export
- Cost
- Free
DWG TrueView
- Runs on
- Windows
- Can edit
- No, view and convert
- Cost
- Free
LibreCAD
- Runs on
- Windows, Mac, Linux
- Can edit
- Yes, 2D CAD
- Cost
- Free, open source
QCAD
- Runs on
- Windows, Mac, Linux
- Can edit
- Yes, 2D CAD
- Cost
- Free community edition
Inkscape
- Runs on
- Windows, Mac, Linux
- Can edit
- Yes, as vector art
- Cost
- Free, open source
AutoCAD
- Runs on
- Windows, Mac
- Can edit
- Yes, full CAD
- Cost
- Paid subscription
Units and scale pitfalls
Coordinates in a DXF are plain numbers. The unit lives in a header variable called $INSUNITS, and many exporters leave it empty or set it to unitless. This viewer reads the header and converts everything to millimetres. When there is no unit it assumes millimetres and tells you, and the unit buttons let you correct it.
The classic mistake is an inch drawing read as millimetres: the part comes out 25.4 times too small. Before you cut or print, compare the size with a dimension you know, such as a bolt hole or the overall width.
25.4 times too small
- Likely cause
- Inches read as millimetres
- Fix
- Set the unit to in
25.4 times too big
- Likely cause
- Millimetres read as inches
- Fix
- Set the unit to mm
10 times too small
- Likely cause
- Centimetres read as millimetres
- Fix
- Set the unit to cm
1000 times too small
- Likely cause
- Metres read as millimetres
- Fix
- Set the unit to m
304.8 times too small
- Likely cause
- Feet read as millimetres
- Fix
- Set the unit to ft
Layers and colors
CAD drawings are organised in layers, each with a name, a color and an on or off state. Designers often keep cut lines, engraving, bend lines, dimensions and notes on separate layers, and many laser and CNC programs assign settings by layer or color. This viewer lists every layer that has content, and layers that were off or frozen in the file start hidden.
Colors come from the AutoCAD Color Index or from true color values. Color 7 is drawn black on a light background and white on a dark one, as it is in CAD. Objects inside a block on layer 0 take the layer of the block reference, again matching CAD.
DXF vs DWG vs SVG
All three store vector drawings, but they were made for different jobs. Use DXF to move 2D geometry between CAD, CAM and cutting software, DWG to keep a full AutoCAD drawing, and SVG for the web, design tools and the cutting machines that prefer it.
Need an SVG from a DXF? Use Download SVG above. The file keeps one group per layer, true millimetre size and thin strokes, which suits Inkscape, laser software and cutting machines.
DXF
- What it is
- Documented exchange format from Autodesk, usually text
- Units
- Header variable, often missing
- Best for
- Laser, CNC and CAD exchange
DWG
- What it is
- AutoCAD's native binary format
- Units
- Stored in the drawing
- Best for
- Full AutoCAD drawings
SVG
- What it is
- Open web standard from the W3C
- Units
- Width and height, often px
- Best for
- Web, Inkscape, vinyl cutters
DXF viewer questions
Answers about privacy, DWG files, supported entities, size and export.
Is this DXF viewer free and private?
Yes. It is free, there is no account, and the file is read by JavaScript in your browser. Nothing is uploaded, so client drawings stay on your computer.
Can it open DWG files?
No. DWG is AutoCAD's own binary format. Open the DWG in your CAD program, or in DWG TrueView on Windows, save it as DXF, and drop the DXF here.
Which DXF entities does it show?
Lines, polylines with arc segments, circles, arcs, ellipses, splines, text, multiline text, solids, dimensions and block references with position, scale, rotation and arrays. Hatches, images and 3D solids are listed as not drawn.
Why is my drawing the wrong size?
The file has no unit in its header, or the wrong one. Use the unit buttons to choose millimetres, inches or another unit, then check a dimension you know.
Can I convert a DXF to SVG or PNG?
Yes. Download SVG keeps the visible layers as vectors at true millimetre size. Download PNG saves a sharp image of the visible layers on the background you picked.
Can I turn a DXF into a 3D printable file?
Yes. Click Make it 3D, or open DXF to STL. It finds the closed shapes, keeps holes as holes and extrudes the drawing to the thickness you choose.