KAP Converter

Convert Nautical charts (KAP) online for free


Drop or upload your .KAP file
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How to convert your KAP file

  1. Click the "Select File" button above, and choose your KAP file.
  2. You'll see a preview.
  3. Click the "Convert file to..." button to save your file in the format you want.

Convert KAP to another file type

The converter easily converts your KAP Charts to various formats - free and online. No OpenCPN or or other GIS software needed.

  • KAP to WBM
  • KAP to PI1
  • KAP to 89I
  • KAP to GREY
  • KAP to RPPM
  • KAP to OTB
  • KAP to 82I
  • KAP to DIS
  • KAP to GBR
  • KAP to 73I
  • KAP to GRB
  • KAP to BMP

Convert a file to KAP

To convert other file formats to the "Raster Navigational Chart" file type, you need software like OpenCPN or a similar tool.


About KAP files

.KAP files are BSB Raster Nautical Charts that store digitized marine maps alongside georeferencing metadata. Navigators use them for GPS plotting on the water. You can open them using specialized marine software like OpenCPN (learn more about Nautical charts).

The main problem with the .KAP format is its rigid, proprietary nature. Standard image viewers and web browsers cannot read the embedded coordinate headers, making the files completely inaccessible on standard operating systems. Furthermore, because they are raster-based scans of paper maps, they are often bulky and pixelate heavily when zoomed in, unlike modern vector maps.

To make the map usable outside of marine systems, you must convert it. For standard viewing, web use, or printing, convert .KAP to PNG or JPG (note: this strips the GPS coordinate data). For professional GIS workflows, convert to GeoTIFF to retain the location metadata. If you want to overlay the chart in Google Earth, convert it to KMZ. Drag and drop your file here to analyze and convert it - free, online, and without installing software.

Use Convert.Guru to open and convert your KAP file.

Users also converted BSB, WEBP, 7Z, PNG, ZIP and CH3 files.


FAQ

If you want to convert KAP file to CSV, JSON, XML, YAML, YML, TOML, INI, CFG, CONF, DAT, DB or SQL, you can use OpenCPN or similar software from the "Raster Nautical Chart Storage" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….

To convert DBF, XML, SQLITE, XLSX, SQL, TSV, ACCDB, YAML, MDB, CSV, ODS or JSON files to KAP, try OpenCPN or another comparable tool in the "Raster Nautical Chart Storage" category.



The KAP 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 KAP converter.