What is an EMF file?
EMF stands for Enhanced Metafile. It was created by Microsoft and first released in 1993. An EMF is a recording of the drawing commands a Windows program sends to the screen, played back to redraw the picture at any size. It replaced WMF with 32-bit Windows, and Office still uses it when charts and diagrams are copied between programs.
| Type | image |
|---|---|
| Compression | Lossless |
| Colour | Windows drawing commands, which can also hold bitmaps |
| Transparency | No |
| Animation | No |
| In a browser | does not open in browsers; Windows shows it, and Word, PowerPoint, LibreOffice and Inkscape open it |
| Common uses | charts and clip art copied between Windows programs, and vector pictures in Office documents |
| MIME type | image/emf |
Which format should you convert EMF to?
- EMF to JPG for photos that must open everywhere and stay small.
- EMF to PNG for screenshots, logos and anything with transparency.
- EMF to PDF to print, or to attach as a document.
EMF is lossless, so converting it to a lossy format is where the file gets much smaller.
How to open an EMF file
An EMF file does not open in a web browser, and only some devices have a program for it. Here is what works on each. If none of these is to hand, converting the file to PNG here is the quickest way to see what is inside it.
| Windows | Word, PowerPoint, LibreOffice and Inkscape (free) open it. |
|---|---|
| Mac | LibreOffice and Inkscape (both free) open it, and Word and PowerPoint place it in documents. |
| iPhone and iPad | iPhone and iPad cannot show EMF. Convert it to PNG or PDF here to view it. |
| Android | Android cannot show EMF. Convert it to PNG or PDF here to view it. |
Want the technical details? See what a .emf file is, with its MIME type, file signature and a viewer.
EMF compared with other image formats
How EMF stacks up against the formats people most often convert it to or from:
| Format | Compression | Transparency | Released | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EMF | Lossless | No | 1993 | charts and clip art copied between Windows programs, and vector pictures in Office documents |
| SVG | Lossless | Yes | 2001 | logos, icons, charts and illustrations on the web |
| EPS | Lossless | No | 1987 | logos and artwork for print, and stock vector graphics |
| Either | No | 1993 | documents, forms, invoices and print-ready files | |
| AI | Lossless | Yes | 1987 | logos, illustrations and print artwork made in Illustrator |
How to use the EMF converter
- Choose the format you want in the Convert to menu.
- Drop your EMF files on the box, or press Choose EMF files. Several files can go in at once.
- Adjust the settings if you need to; the defaults suit most people.
- Press Convert and save each file with its Download button. The file is converted on our server and deleted as soon as the result is sent back.
Tips for converting EMF files without losing quality
EMF is a vector format, so it is a good source for any conversion. Converting it to another vector format keeps shapes as shapes; converting it to PNG or JPG draws it at one fixed size.
- Keep the original drawing as the master copy; it is the file you can edit and convert again.
- Converting between vector formats keeps shapes as shapes. Converting to PNG or JPG fixes the drawing at one size, so pick the largest size you will need.
- Each vector format supports different effects: gradients, transparency and filters are where results differ most, so check them after converting.
- For laser cutters and CAD programs, DXF is the usual format; for Office documents, EMF; for the web, SVG.
Convert EMF files from the command line
Inkscape does the same on your own computer:
inkscape input.emf --export-type=png --export-dpi=300 --export-background=white --export-filename=output.png
magick output.png output.bmpConverting on your own computer keeps the file entirely local, which is worth it for very large or very sensitive documents. For everything else, the converter on this page does it without installing anything.
EMF converter FAQ
What is an EMF file?
EMF stands for Enhanced Metafile, an image format created by Microsoft in 1993. An EMF is a recording of the drawing commands a Windows program sends to the screen, played back to redraw the picture at any size. It replaced WMF with 32-bit Windows, and Office still uses it when charts and diagrams are copied between programs.
How do I open an EMF file?
EMF does not open in browsers; Windows shows it, and Word, PowerPoint, LibreOffice and Inkscape open it. If the program you need will not open it, convert it to a more widely supported format above.
What is the most common EMF conversion?
EMF to BMP is the conversion people search for most. The EMF is opened by Inkscape, the open-source vector editor, on our conversion server and saved as a PDF, and MuPDF draws it at 300 dpi, so a drawing 10 cm wide becomes about 1,180 pixels wide. The longest side is capped at 6,000 pixels.
Does converting EMF files here upload them?
Yes. EMF conversions need Inkscape, MuPDF, Ghostscript, pstoedit and librsvg, open-source programs that cannot run in a browser, so they run on our conversion server. The file is uploaded, converted, and deleted together with the result as soon as the result has been sent back to you. Nothing is kept.
Is the EMF converter free?
Yes. There is no sign-up and no watermark. Conversions that use our server accept files up to 25 MB, with a fair-use limit per hour. The site is supported by advertising.
Can I convert EMF files on iPhone or Android?
Yes. Open this page in Safari on iPhone and iPad, or in Chrome on Android, choose your EMF files and download the results to your Downloads folder.
Can I convert several EMF files at once?
Yes. Drop as many as you like; they are converted one after another, each with its own download button.