Free Online EMF/WMF Viewer (No Signup)
Also opens DWG, DXF, STEP, IGES, IFC, SKP, STL, OBJ, GLB, FBX, 3DM and other 3D/CAD files. Drop any file on the viewer.
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Also from Innerscene: Circadian Lab, a free lighting calculator for room illuminance, melanopic EML, and glare.
What Is an EMF/WMF File?
A Windows metafile records a picture as the drawing calls a Windows program made: move to here, draw a line, fill this polygon with that brush, write this text in that font, paint this bitmap. Replaying the records redraws the picture at any size, which is why Office, Visio and many charting tools use metafiles for clip art, charts and pasted drawings.
There are two generations. WMF (Windows Metafile, .wmf) dates from 16-bit Windows: 16-bit coordinates, and usually a placeable header that gives the picture its size. EMF (Enhanced Metafile, .emf) is the 32-bit successor, with a header that states the picture frame in hundredths of a millimetre, world transforms, paths and clipping. Most EMF files written by Office also carry EMF+ records, the GDI+ version of the same picture with antialiased shapes, gradients and transparency. The .emz and .wmz files are the same pictures compressed with gzip.
This viewer replays the records in your browser and draws the picture as vector lines, fills and text on its own page, at its own size. It exports the result as SVG, PDF, DXF, PNG or a self-contained HTML page.
Who Uses EMF/WMF Files?
Anyone who works with Microsoft Office pictures: charts and diagrams copied out of Excel, PowerPoint and Visio, clip art libraries, logos delivered by print shops and sign makers as EMF, and drawings exported from CAD, GIS, charting and scientific tools that write metafiles for Windows. People who receive an .emf or .wmf on a Mac, a Chromebook or a phone, where no program opens it, need a way to see it and turn it into something they can use.
Common Use Cases
- See an .emf or .wmf picture on a Mac, a Chromebook or a phone
- Turn a Windows metafile into an SVG or a PDF at its real size
- Get the linework of a logo or diagram into a CAD program as DXF
- Check the page size of a metafile before placing it in a layout
- Open the .emz or .wmz a document or a clip art pack stores
- Save a PNG or JPG of a metafile for a web page or an email
Features
EMF, EMF+ and WMF
Enhanced Metafiles with or without their EMF+ records, and Windows Metafiles with or without a placeable header, all open as the same kind of drawing.
Compressed .emz and .wmz
The gzip-compressed forms Office and Visio store open directly, with nothing to unpack first.
Vector, Record by Record
Lines, curves, polygons, paths, rectangles and ellipses are replayed as vector shapes that stay sharp at any zoom.
Fills and Gradients
Solid, hatched and pattern brushes, linear gradients and EMF+ path gradients are drawn as the picture sets them.
Text Where It Belongs
Text is placed with its font size, alignment, rotation and colour, in the nearest font your browser has.
Embedded Pictures
Bitmaps, JPEG and PNG images inside the metafile are drawn in place, clipped the way the picture clips them.
Its Own Page and Size
The picture opens framed on the page the file declares, and the status line gives its size in millimetres.
True-Size SVG and PDF
The SVG export carries the picture’s size in millimetres, and the vector PDF is a page the size of the picture at 1:1.
Recognised by Content
EMF and WMF files are identified by their headers, so a picture with the wrong extension still opens.
Export to SVG, PDF, DXF, PNG, JPG, HTML
Save the picture as a vector file, a CAD drawing, an image, or one web page that opens offline.
Works on Any Computer
Open a Windows metafile on a Mac, a Chromebook, Linux or a phone, where nothing else opens it.
Nothing Is Uploaded
The picture is read and drawn entirely in your browser. No account, no upload, no copy of your file on a server.
Compatibility & Format Notes
EMF files are read with their EMF+ records: when an Office file carries both, the EMF+ picture is drawn, and a file whose EMF+ records use something this viewer does not draw falls back to its plain EMF records. WMF files are read whether or not they have a placeable header; a WMF converted from an EMF is drawn from the EMF it carries. Lines, curves, polygons, paths, rectangles and ellipses, solid, hatched and pattern brushes, linear and path gradients, text with its alignment and rotation, embedded bitmaps and JPEG or PNG images, and clipping are all replayed. Compressed .emz and .wmz files open the same way.
Files are recognised by their content: the EMF header signature, the placeable WMF key or the WMF header, so a metafile with the wrong extension still opens. The page is the picture frame the file declares, drawn on white paper, and the status line shows the kind of metafile and its size in millimetres.
Text is drawn with the browser’s nearest match to the font the file names. The SVG, HTML, PNG and JPG exports keep embedded bitmaps; the vector PDF and DXF exports carry the vector drawing without them. A metafile has no layers, so the Layers panel is empty. A file whose records are damaged or draw nothing gets a notice asking for a fresh save or an SVG, PDF or PNG export from the program that made it.
Embed on Your Website
Add this viewer to your own site with a single line of HTML. Click Embed in the toolbar to generate an embed code, or use the snippet below with your own file URL.
Your Files Stay on Your Computer
Your EMF/WMF files are parsed entirely in your browser. Nothing is uploaded, stored, or shared unless you explicitly click the Share button. Shared files are hosted for 90 days then deleted.
Frequently Asked Questions
▶How do I open an EMF file on a Mac?
Drop it on this page. macOS has no built-in EMF viewer: Preview does not open the format. The viewer draws the picture in your browser, on a Mac, a Chromebook, Linux or a phone alike, and you can save it as SVG, PDF or PNG from the Export menu.
▶What is the difference between EMF and WMF?
WMF is the 16-bit Windows metafile format; EMF is its 32-bit successor with a stated picture size, world transforms, paths and clipping. EMF+ is a further set of records inside an EMF that carries the same picture for GDI+, with antialiasing, gradients and transparency. The viewer reads all three.
▶Will the exported SVG or PDF be the right size?
Yes. The SVG export carries the picture’s width and height in millimetres, and the vector PDF export writes a page the size of the picture with the drawing at 1:1. PNG and JPG exports are rendered at the resolution you choose in the export dialog.
▶Can I get the drawing into AutoCAD?
Yes. Export as DXF to get the lines, curves and filled areas as editable geometry in millimetres, or as DWG, which is converted on our server from the DXF the viewer writes. Embedded bitmaps are not written to DXF.
▶What are .emz and .wmz files?
They are EMF and WMF pictures compressed with gzip, the way Office and Visio often store them. The viewer expands them and opens the picture inside, so there is nothing to unpack first.
▶Is this EMF/WMF viewer really free?
Yes, completely free. No signup, no watermarks, no file size limits on the viewer (the optional share-link feature has a 100 MB upload cap). Built by Innerscene as a tool for architects, engineers, and designers.
▶Are my files uploaded to a server?
No. All parsing, rendering, and conversion runs in your browser — nothing is uploaded, stored, or transmitted by default. The Share button is the only feature that uploads a file, and only when you explicitly click it.
▶Can I convert to another format?
Yes, to vector and image formats. Click Export in the toolbar to save the picture as SVG (at its real size), PDF (a vector page the size of the picture, or a snapshot of the view), DXF, a self-contained HTML page, or a PNG or JPG image. DWG is also offered: that one is converted on our server from the DXF the viewer writes. The viewer does not write EMF or WMF.
▶Can I embed this viewer on my own site?
Yes. Click Embed in the toolbar to generate a one-line <iframe> snippet you can paste into any HTML page. You can choose whether the embed shows the viewer’s toolbar.
Windows, Microsoft Office and Visio are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Innerscene is not affiliated with Microsoft.