Extract text from PBI files
To convert your PBI file to another format, you need PocketBook or other System software.
To convert other file formats to the "Firmware & Software Packages" file type, you need software like PocketBook or a similar tool.
The .pbi extension is a source of frequent confusion because it serves three completely unrelated purposes, and is often a typo for a fourth.
If you own a PocketBook e-reader, this file is an application or firmware update package. Under the hood, it is simply a renamed ZIP archive containing the software executable (sysinstall.app) and configuration files. The frustration here is that Windows and macOS do not recognize the extension, meaning you cannot double-click to view the contents. To "convert" or inspect it, you can simply rename the file extension from .pbi to zip and open it with any standard archiver like 7-Zip or WinRAR.
Many users searching for this file actually have a PBIX (Power BI Report) or .PBIT (Template) file and have either mistyped the extension or saved it incorrectly. Microsoft Power BI Desktop does not natively use a standalone .pbi format. If you cannot open your file in Power BI, check if the extension is incomplete. Renaming it to PBIX often solves the issue if the file header is intact.
In bioinformatics, a .pbi file is an index used alongside BAM (Binary Alignment Map) files generated by Pacific Biosciences sequencers. These are technical index files (similar to .bai) that allow software like Samtools or IGV to randomly access data within the massive BAM file. You cannot "convert" or open this file meaningfully on its own; it must reside in the same folder as the source .bam file to function.
Historically, .pbi stood for "Push Button Installer" on the PC-BSD operating system (now discontinued/TrueOS). These were self-contained packages (similar to macOS APP or Windows EXE) designed to install software without dependency headaches. These files are now largely obsolete.
Convert.Guru analyzes your PBI file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted PBIX, PDF, XAPK, INSTALL, VPK, ENG and PPT files.
If you want to convert PBI file to PDF, ENG, PPT, ZIP, RAR, 7Z, TAR, GZ, BZ2, XZ, LZMA or CAB, you can use PocketBook or similar software from the "Application Installer Package" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert XXE, 7Z, Z, PAK, LHA, DEB, UUE, TAR, LZH, ZIP, PKG or RAR files to PBI, try PocketBook or another comparable tool in the "Application Installer Package" 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 PBI converter.