Extract text from LiDAR and well log files (LAS)
To convert LAS data files to another format, you need LAStools or other GIS software.
To convert other file formats to the "Point Cloud Data File" file type, you need software like LAStools or a similar tool.
A .LAS file typically contains 3D point cloud data collected by optical remote sensing (LiDAR). Governed by the ASPRS, these files store precise spatial coordinates (X, Y, Z) alongside attributes like point intensity, return number, and GPS time. Alternatively, in the petroleum and geological industries, .LAS stands for Log ASCII Standard. Managed by the CWLS, these are completely different files that store well logging data in a structured text format.
LiDAR .LAS files are notoriously uncompressed and massive, often exceeding hundreds of megabytes or gigabytes. They are proprietary to professional GIS environments and cannot be natively opened in web browsers, standard document viewers, or basic CAD applications. Processing them usually requires expensive software like ArcGIS or complex command-line utilities like LAStools. Meanwhile, Log ASCII .LAS files, though technically plain text, rely on highly specific formatting blocks that standard spreadsheet applications routinely misinterpret, requiring manual data cleanup.
Drag and drop your file here to analyze and convert it - free, online, and without installing software. For archiving and transferring heavy LiDAR data, you should always convert .LAS to LAZ for lossless compression. To extract raw coordinates for analysis, convert to XYZ or CSV. For 3D modeling purposes, targeting PLY or OBJ is highly recommended. If you are dealing with CWLS well logs, converting to CSV or XLSX makes the geological data instantly readable in Microsoft Excel.
Convert.Guru analyzes your LAS file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted LAZ, LSA, E57, ZIP, ZLAS, RCP, CSV, TXT, PLY, LASD, RCS, PDF and XLSX files.
If you want to convert LAS file to RCP, LAZ, CSV, PLY, DWG, DEM, E57, KML, SHP, KMZ, GPX or GEOJSON, you can use LAStools or similar software from the "LiDAR Point Cloud Storage" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert LAZ, KMZ, DTM, CSV, DEM, PRJ, GPX, DSM, SHP, DBF, KML or IMG files to LAS, try LAStools or another comparable tool in the "LiDAR Point Cloud Storage" category.
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 LAS converter.