Click the "Select File" button above, and choose your 3DF file.
You’ll see a preview, if available.
Click the "Convert file to..." button to extract text information.
Convert 3DF to another file type
To convert 3DF 3D models to another format, you need Autodesk 3ds Max or other 3D software.
Convert a file to 3DF
To convert other file formats to the "Legacy 3D Model Format" file type, you need software like Autodesk 3ds Max or a similar tool.
About 3DF files
.3DF is a highly fragmented file extension primarily used for legacy 3D game models, Apple QuickDraw 3D Metafiles, and 3D gridded data in DHI MIKE software. These files contain three-dimensional mesh data, vertices, and occasionally textures or scientific configuration data. You can attempt to open them using Autodesk 3ds Max, but compatibility is often limited to very specific, outdated software versions. You need to convert .3DF files because the format is heavily deprecated. It is proprietary, lacks modern documentation, and is entirely unsupported by web browsers or modern generic 3D viewers. Storing active project data in a .3DF file creates a high risk of data loss. The best target formats for conversion are OBJ, FBX, or STL. Converting to these universal standards ensures your 3D geometry is accessible across almost all modern CAD and 3D applications, though you may lose specific proprietary material definitions or animation rigs during the transition. .3DF files are notoriously difficult to convert because standard online converters fail to parse the closed, undocumented binary structures used by defunct platforms like Apple QuickDraw 3D. Often, only the original legacy software can properly read or export the data. Just drag and drop your file onto convert.guru to identify its exact format, inspect the internal file headers, and extract readable text content. If our analysis detects a supported underlying or embedded format, viewing or conversion may still be possible.
Convert.Guru analyzes your 3DF file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
If you want to convert 3DF file to STL, OBJ, FBX, DAE, 3DS, MAX, BLEND, MA, MB, C4D, PLY or WRL, you can use Autodesk 3ds Max or similar software from the "3D Model Data Storage" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert DWG, DAE, X3D, IGES, WRL, JT, SKP, 3DS, 3DM, OBJ, STEP or FBX files to 3DF, try Autodesk 3ds Max or another comparable tool in the "3D Model Data Storage" category.
The 3DF Converter Story
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our 3DF converter.