Extract text from osu! beatmaps (OSU)
To convert OSU beatmaps to another format, you need osu! or other Game software.
To convert other file formats to the "Game Level Data File" file type, you need software like osu! or a similar tool.
The .osu file is a human-readable text script used by the rhythm game osu! to store beatmap data. It dictates the exact timing, location, and behavior of hit circles, sliders, and spinners, while also storing song metadata and background image references.
These files are exclusively managed by the osu! client. The biggest disadvantage of the .osu format is the widespread confusion regarding its contents. Users frequently attempt to play these files in standard audio software, expecting to hear the song. However, .osu files contain zero media data; they only hold text coordinates. The actual MP3 or OGG tracks are stored separately within a compressed osz archive, meaning the .osu file is practically useless on its own for media playback.
Standard online converters fail to process .osu files because they mistakenly interpret them as proprietary audio files rather than configuration scripts. If you need to extract the beatmap data for external development or statistical analysis, the best conversion targets are structured text formats like TXT, JSON, or CSV.
Because this format is tightly coupled to the game's internal engine, it is impossible to visually render the level outside the official client without specialized rendering tools. Just drag and drop your file to identify the format, view its plain-text script contents, and convert it when possible.
Convert.Guru analyzes your OSU file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted OSZ, OSR, OPUS, OSK, ZIP, TXT, OSB and MP4 files.
If you want to convert OSU file to MP4, EXE, ISO, BIN, CUE, PAK, WAD, PK3, PK4, BSP, MAP or SAV, you can use osu! or similar software from the "Rhythm Game Beatmap Script" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert MOD, BIN, CFG, SCX, DAT, MPQ, LOG, CUE, INI, EXE, SCM or ISO files to OSU, try osu! or another comparable tool in the "Rhythm Game Beatmap Script" 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 OSU converter.