Extract text from SHP files
To convert your SHP file to another format, you need ArcGIS Pro or other GIS software.
To convert other file formats to the "Vector Map Data" file type, you need software like ArcGIS Pro or a similar tool.
The .SHP extension primarily indicates an ESRI Shapefile, the industry-standard geospatial vector data format developed by Esri. While ubiquitous in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), .SHP files present significant friction for casual users.
First, a "Shapefile" is technically a collection of at least three files (main.shp, main.shx, and main.dbf). Users frequently fail to share the complete set, rendering the .SHP unreadable. Second, the format is governed by a 2GB file size limit and often requires expensive, specialized software like ArcGIS Pro or a steep learning curve with open-source alternatives like QGIS to view or edit. Finally, .SHP data is not natively supported by modern web browsers or Google Maps.
To overcome these constraints, users should convert their data based on the intended output. For web mapping and integration with Google Earth, convert .SHP to KML or GeoJSON. For CAD workflows, convert to DXF or DWG. For simple data analysis without map visualization, converting the attribute data to CSV or XLSX is often sufficient. A legacy use case exists where .SHP refers to 3D objects in early versions of Autodesk 3D Studio, though this is rare today.
Convert.Guru analyzes your SHP file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted SHX, ZIP, DBF, CPG, PRJ, KML, SBN, XML, GIS, SBX, KMZ, SHB and RAR files.
If you want to convert SHP file to KML, KMZ, DWG, GEOJSON, GPX, CSV, DXF, JSON, PDF, OBJ, FBX or DAE, you can use ArcGIS Pro or similar software from the "Geospatial Vector Data" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert DWG, DAE, X3D, IGES, WRL, JT, SKP, 3DS, 3DM, OBJ, STEP or FBX files to SHP, try ArcGIS Pro or another comparable tool in the "Geospatial Vector Data" 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 SHP converter.