How to open a DBF file
Inspect the rows and columns in a DBF table directly in your browser without installing dBase or database software.
FormatPeek Editorial TeamPresented by Claire Bennett, editorial personaPublished September 10, 2026 · Updated September 10, 2026
Private by designYour DBF table is read locally in this browser and is never uploaded to our server.
Example result8 readable rows · 5 fields
example.dbfdBase III · Updated September 8, 2026
8 declared records5 fields
8 matching rows
| CUSTOMER_IDCharacter (8) | COMPANYCharacter (32) | CITYCharacter (20) | BALANCENumeric (10, 2) | ACTIVELogical (1) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| C-1001 | Northstar Supply | Seattle | 12450.00 | Yes |
| C-1002 | Cedar & Finch | Portland | 8280.50 | Yes |
| C-1003 | Blue Harbor Works | San Diego | 0.00 | No |
| C-1004 | Atlas Field Group | Denver | 3925.75 | Yes |
| C-1005 | Morrow Office Co. | Boston | 1840.00 | Yes |
| C-1006 | Juniper Systems | Austin | 6710.25 | Yes |
| C-1007 | Westline Studio | Chicago | 210.00 | No |
| C-1008 | Redwood Partners | Sacramento | 9575.00 | Yes |
Open a DBF file online
- Drop the .dbf file into the viewer above.
- Review the detected format, fields and record count.
- Search the table, move between pages or export the readable records to CSV.
Can Excel open a DBF file?
Spreadsheet support varies by application and version. Exporting readable records to CSV is often the simplest way to inspect them in a spreadsheet, but CSV does not retain DBF field metadata.
Why are memo fields missing?
The long text may be stored in a separate DBT or FPT companion file. Keep related files together and use software that supports the matching DBF variant when memo contents are essential.
Why will a DBF file not open?
The file may be truncated, encrypted, use an unsupported variant or have the wrong extension. If it belongs to a larger application database, other index and memo files may also be required.