AI Viewer
Open an .ai file in your browser and look at it properly, without the app it was made in. Most .ai files carry a PDF copy of the artwork, one page for each artboard, and the viewer draws that copy from its vector shapes, so it stays sharp when you zoom in. Thumbnails show every artboard at once; click one to see it large, zoom from 5% to 800% and drag to move around. Layers that were saved as PDF layers can be switched on and off. The side panel tells you what is in the file: each artboard’s size in points, millimetres and inches, the app and version named in the file, when it was made, the fonts used and whether the Illustrator editing data is inside. When you have seen enough, save the artboard as a PNG or SVG, or the whole file as a PDF. If the file was saved without its PDF copy, or is an old PostScript-only .ai, the viewer tells you plainly instead of showing nothing. Your file is never uploaded.
100% private — everything runs in your browser. Everything runs in your browser; your .ai files are never uploaded.
Drag to move around. Zoom with the buttons, or hold Ctrl (⌘ on a Mac) and scroll.
Layers
About this file
Save
Runs in your browser: the .ai file’s PDF part is read and drawn by pdf.js (Apache-2.0), loaded from jsDelivr when you add a file; nothing is uploaded and nothing is saved. .ai files saved without PDF content and old PostScript-only .ai files cannot be shown here: the viewer says so. You may use what you make here, including commercially, with no credit needed. The rights in your own artwork stay as they were. Not affiliated with Adobe.
How to open an AI file online
- Drop your .ai file on the box, or click Try a sample.
- Click a thumbnail to pick an artboard; zoom with the buttons or Ctrl/⌘ and the scroll wheel, and drag to move around.
- Switch layers on and off, and read the sizes, fonts and version in the side panel.
- Choose PNG, SVG or PDF and click Download if you need a copy.
What you can use it for
- Open an .ai file someone sent you when you do not have the app it was made in
- Check the artboard sizes before sending a file to print
- See which fonts an .ai file uses before you open it on another computer
- Find which version of the app saved a file
- Preview a logo pack with many artboards at a glance
- Save one artboard as a PNG for a quick message or slide
What the viewer shows
| Panel | What you see | Read from |
|---|---|---|
| Thumbnails | Every artboard, up to 60 at a glance | Each page of the PDF copy |
| Main view | One artboard, 5% to 800%, drag to move | Drawn from the vector shapes, sharp at any zoom |
| Layers | Layer names with on and off switches | PDF layers (optional content), when the file saved them |
| About this file | Artboard sizes, app and version, dates, fonts, editing data | The PDF copy’s own information |
| Save | This artboard as PNG or SVG, the whole file as PDF | The same PDF copy |
Sizes are given in points, millimetres and inches: a point is 1/72 inch, so a 612 × 792 pt artboard is 8.5 × 11 in, US Letter.
Which .ai files open here
| Kind of .ai file | How to tell | What happens here |
|---|---|---|
| Saved with “Create PDF Compatible File” on (the usual setting) | Opens in a PDF viewer and shows the artwork | Works: every artboard is a page |
| Saved with that option off | A PDF viewer shows only a notice that it was saved without PDF content | Clear message, nothing faked: save it again with the option on |
| Old PostScript-only .ai | Starts with %!PS-Adobe instead of %PDF | Clear message: save it as a newer .ai or a PDF |
| A PDF renamed .ai, or a real PDF | Starts with %PDF | Works like any .ai with PDF compatibility |
An .ai file saved with the option off still starts like a PDF, but its only page is a notice that reads: “This is an Adobe® Illustrator® File that was saved without PDF Content. To Place or open this file in other applications, it should be re-saved from Adobe Illustrator with the ‘Create PDF Compatible File’ option turned on.” The tool reads that notice and tells you, instead of showing the notice as if it were your artwork.
Save as PNG, SVG or PDF
| Format | What you get | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| PNG | This artboard at 72, 150 or 300 DPI, transparent background, layers as shown | Slides, messages, web pages |
| SVG | This artboard as vector paths and text | Web pages and SVG editors |
| The file’s whole PDF copy, every artboard, unchanged | Printing and sending to anyone |
For more control, convert vector files with the SVG Converter, look inside an SVG with the SVG Viewer, or turn a PDF into pictures with PDF to PNG. Layered photo files have their own converter: PSD to PNG.
Not affiliated with Adobe.
Sources
Sources: a real .ai file saved without PDF content (Texas State University laser template), whose page carries the notice quoted above; pdf.js on GitHub (Apache-2.0 licence); ISO 32000-2, the PDF 2.0 standard (page-piece dictionaries, optional content, 1 point = 1/72 inch).
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See all free tools →Frequently asked questions
Is this AI viewer free?
Yes. There is no sign-up, no watermark and no limit on files. The file is read in your browser and never leaves your device.
Do I need Illustrator to open an .ai file?
No. Most .ai files include a PDF copy of the artwork, and the viewer draws that copy with pdf.js in your browser. You only need Illustrator if the file was saved without that copy, or to edit it.
Can I see every artboard?
Yes. Each artboard is its own page in the file’s PDF copy and gets a thumbnail; click one to see it large, or use the arrows. Files with more than 60 artboards show the first 60 as thumbnails and the rest through the arrows.
Can I turn layers on and off?
When the file saved its layers as PDF layers, they are listed in the side panel and you can switch each one on or off. Many .ai files flatten their layers in the PDF copy; then there is nothing to list, and the panel stays hidden.
How does it know the version and fonts?
The PDF copy names the app that wrote it, such as Adobe Illustrator CC 2017 (Macintosh), and the fonts its text uses. The viewer reads both from the file itself, so it only shows what the file says. Text turned into outlines uses no font, so none is listed for it.
Can I edit the file here?
No, this is a viewer. To change colours or shapes, save the artboard as SVG and open it in an SVG editor.
Why does it say my .ai file was saved without PDF content?
Illustrator can save an .ai file without the PDF copy of the artwork that other programs read; the option is called Create PDF Compatible File. Such a file holds only the Illustrator editing data, which no browser tool can read. Open it in Illustrator, choose Save As, tick Create PDF Compatible File and add the new file.
Can it open very old .ai files?
Not the old PostScript-only kind, which start with %!PS-Adobe instead of %PDF. They need a PostScript interpreter, which this tool does not have, so it says so plainly. Save the file as a newer .ai with PDF compatibility, or as a PDF, and try again.
Is this for pictures made with AI?
No. AI here is the .ai file extension of vector artwork from Illustrator and similar apps. Pictures from AI image generators are usually PNG, JPG or WebP files.
Is my .ai file uploaded?
No. The file is read and drawn in your browser; only the pdf.js reader is downloaded, from jsDelivr.