Click the "Select File" button above, and choose your QGS file.
You’ll see a preview, if available.
Click the "Convert file to..." button to extract text information.
Convert QGS to another file type
To convert QGS projects to another format, you need QGIS or other GIS software.
Convert a file to QGS
To convert other file formats to the "Geospatial Project File" file type, you need software like QGIS or a similar tool.
About QGS files
A .QGS file is a project save file created by QGIS, the leading open-source Geographic Information System. Technically, it is a text file formatted in XML that acts as a configuration wrapper; it stores pointers to geospatial data layers (like SHP or TIFF), styling rules, print layouts, and projection settings, but it does not contain the actual map data. A common friction point occurs when users email a .QGS file to a colleague without attaching the referenced data files; the recipient opens it only to find "missing layer" errors and blank canvases. Furthermore, .QGS files are uncompressed XML, which can become bloated with complex projects, making them slower to parse than the modern, compressed QGZ format. Since they are strictly software-specific, they cannot be viewed in web browsers or easily imported into proprietary tools like ArcGIS Pro without friction. For sharing a static view of your map, the best workflow is converting the project layout to PDF or PNG. For archiving or cleaner file management, converting .QGS to QGZ (the zipped variant) reduces file size significantly.
Convert.Guru analyzes your QGS file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
If you want to convert QGS file to SHP, KML, KMZ, GPX, GEOJSON, TOPOJSON, TIF, TIFF, ECW, SID, IMG or DEM, you can use QGIS or similar software from the "GIS Project Configuration" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert LAZ, KMZ, DTM, CSV, DEM, PRJ, LAS, GPX, DSM, SHP, DBF or KML files to QGS, try QGIS or another comparable tool in the "GIS Project Configuration" category.
The QGS 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 QGS converter.