What is an EPS file?
EPS stands for Encapsulated PostScript. It was created by Adobe and first released in 1987. An EPS is a small PostScript program that draws one page of artwork, with a bounding box so it can be placed inside other documents. Printers and designers still ask for it, but it is gradually being replaced by PDF and SVG.
| Type | image |
|---|---|
| Compression | Lossless |
| Colour | vector drawing, which can also hold raster images |
| Transparency | No |
| Animation | No |
| In a browser | does not open in browsers; Illustrator, Inkscape and Affinity Designer open it, and macOS Preview converts it to PDF |
| Common uses | logos and artwork for print, and stock vector graphics |
| MIME type | application/postscript |
Which format should you convert EPS to?
- EPS to JPG for photos that must open everywhere and stay small.
- EPS to PNG for screenshots, logos and anything with transparency.
- EPS to PDF to print, or to attach as a document.
EPS is lossless, so converting it to a lossy format is where the file gets much smaller.
How to open an EPS file
An EPS 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 | Illustrator, Inkscape (free) and Affinity Designer open EPS; Photoshop opens it as an image. |
|---|---|
| Mac | Illustrator, Inkscape and Affinity Designer open EPS. Preview could show EPS until macOS Ventura; newer versions need conversion. |
| iPhone and iPad | iPhone and iPad cannot show EPS. Convert it to PNG or PDF here to view it. |
| Android | Android cannot show EPS. Convert it to PNG or PDF here to view it. |
Want the technical details? See what a .eps file is, with its MIME type, file signature and a viewer.
EPS compared with other image formats
How EPS stacks up against the formats people most often convert it to or from:
| Format | Compression | Transparency | Released | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EPS | Lossless | No | 1987 | logos and artwork for print, and stock vector graphics |
| SVG | Lossless | Yes | 2001 | logos, icons, charts and illustrations on the web |
| Either | No | 1993 | documents, forms, invoices and print-ready files | |
| AI | Lossless | Yes | 1987 | logos, illustrations and print artwork made in Illustrator |
| EMF | Lossless | No | 1993 | charts and clip art copied between Windows programs, and vector pictures in Office documents |
How to use the EPS converter
- Choose the format you want in the Convert to menu.
- Drop your EPS files on the box, or press Choose EPS 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. Converting to BMP, DXF, EMF, GIF, JPG, PDF, PNG, PSD, SVG, TIFF, WMF uses our server, which deletes the file right after; the rest never leave your device.
Tips for converting EPS files without losing quality
EPS 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.
- Choose by content: photos belong in JPG or WebP, while screenshots, logos and anything with transparency belong in PNG or WebP.
- Resize before you send. A modern phone photo is far wider than any screen, and scaling it to 1920 pixels removes most of the file size.
- Keep originals. Re-saving a JPG again and again slowly degrades it; convert from the original each time.
- Converting through the browser removes EXIF metadata such as GPS location, which is useful when sharing photos publicly.
Convert EPS files from the command line
This page uses Ghostscript, which is free for Windows, Mac and Linux. The same conversion from the command line:
gs -dSAFER -dBATCH -dNOPAUSE -sDEVICE=bmp16m -r300 -dEPSCrop -sOutputFile=output.bmp input.epsConverting 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.
EPS converter FAQ
What is an EPS file?
EPS stands for Encapsulated PostScript, an image format created by Adobe in 1987. An EPS is a small PostScript program that draws one page of artwork, with a bounding box so it can be placed inside other documents. Printers and designers still ask for it, but it is gradually being replaced by PDF and SVG.
How do I open an EPS file?
EPS does not open in browsers; Illustrator, Inkscape and Affinity Designer open it, and macOS Preview converts it to PDF. If the program you need will not open it, convert it to a more widely supported format above.
What is the most common EPS conversion?
EPS to BMP is the conversion people search for most. The EPS is read by Ghostscript, the standard open-source PostScript interpreter, and the artwork is drawn by MuPDF at 300 dpi, cropped to its bounding box, then saved as a BMP file by ImageMagick, on our conversion server.
Does converting EPS files here upload them?
Only for some conversions. Converting to BMP, DXF, EMF, GIF, JPG, PDF, PNG, PSD, SVG, TIFF, WMF uses our conversion server, where the file is deleted as soon as the result is sent back; the other conversions run inside your browser and never leave your device.
Is the EPS 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 EPS files on iPhone or Android?
Yes. Open this page in Safari on iPhone and iPad, or in Chrome on Android, choose your EPS files and download the results to your Downloads folder.
Can I convert several EPS files at once?
Yes. Drop as many as you like; they are converted one after another, each with its own download button.