Best Free Online File Converters in 2026 (PDF, Image, Video & More)
Need to turn a PDF into Word, a HEIC photo into JPG, or a video into MP3? A free online file converter does it in your browser, with nothing to install. Many of the 28 tools in our original 2009 list have since shut down, so we’ve rebuilt it for 2026 with the converters that still work well, grouped by file type, plus free desktop apps for big or private files.
Quick answer: For almost any format, use CloudConvert, FreeConvert or Zamzar. For PDFs, use iLovePDF or PDF24. For images, Google’s Squoosh is excellent. For large or private files, use free desktop apps like HandBrake (video) and LibreOffice (documents).
Table of Contents
Best all-in-one free online file converters
These handle hundreds of formats (documents, images, audio, video, e-books and archives) in one place. Free limits change often, so the figures below are a guide at the time of writing.
| Converter | Free limit (approx.) | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| CloudConvert | About 25 conversions a day | Quality and control, Google Drive and Dropbox import |
| FreeConvert | Files up to about 1 GB | Large video files, batch conversion |
| Zamzar | Files up to about 50 MB, a few per hour | Over 1,000 formats, including old ones (online since 2006) |
| Convertio | Files up to about 100 MB | OCR (scanned PDF to editable text) |
| Online-Convert | Files up to about 100 MB | Detailed audio, video and image settings |
Free PDF converters
- iLovePDF: PDF to Word, Excel, PowerPoint and JPG and back, plus merge, split and compress.
- PDF24 Tools: completely free, no limits or sign-up, with a free Windows app for offline use.
- Smallpdf and Adobe Acrobat online: polished converters with a few free conversions a day.
- Microsoft Word and Google Docs: both can open PDFs and save them as editable documents, and save any document as PDF (File → Download → PDF).
Free image converters
- Squoosh: Google’s free image tool converts between JPG, PNG, WebP and AVIF and shrinks file size, all inside your browser, so images aren’t uploaded anywhere.
- HEIC to JPG: iPhone photos open in Windows Photos with the free HEIF Image Extension, or convert them with CloudConvert or FreeConvert.
- Built-in apps: Paint on Windows and Preview on Mac can “Save As” or “Export” to other image formats.
- Vector Magic: still the go-to for turning a bitmap logo into a clean vector (paid, with a free trial).
Free video and audio converters
- FreeConvert and CloudConvert: convert MOV, MKV, AVI and WebM to MP4, or extract MP3 audio from a video file.
- HandBrake: a free, open-source desktop app for Windows, Mac and Linux. It’s the best choice for large videos, with no upload or size limit.
- VLC media player: its Media → Convert/Save option converts video and audio for free.
Converting videos downloaded from YouTube or other sites can break their terms and copyright rules. Only convert files you own or have permission to use.
Free document and e-book converters
- LibreOffice: a free office suite that opens and saves Word, Excel, PowerPoint, ODT and PDF files offline.
- Calibre: free e-book manager that converts between EPUB, MOBI, AZW3 and PDF.
- Google Docs, Sheets and Slides: upload an Office file, then download it in another format.
Is it safe to use a free online file converter?
Online converters upload your file to their servers. Reputable ones delete files after a few hours, but:
- Don’t upload sensitive files like bank statements, ID cards, contracts or medical records. Use a desktop app (LibreOffice, PDF24 for Windows, HandBrake) or a browser-only tool like Squoosh instead.
- Watch out for fake download buttons and ads on less-known converter sites.
- Avoid sites that ask you to install an extension or “download converter software” just to get your file.
Need to find where an image came from before converting it? Try these reverse image search engines.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free online file converter?
CloudConvert is the best all-rounder for quality and formats. FreeConvert is better for very large files, and Zamzar covers the most formats, including old ones.
Can I convert files without uploading them?
Yes. Squoosh converts images in your browser without uploading them, and desktop apps like LibreOffice, HandBrake and Calibre work completely offline.
How do I convert a PDF to Word for free?
Upload it to iLovePDF or PDF24 and choose PDF to Word, or open the PDF directly in Microsoft Word or Google Docs and save it as a document.
This list was first written for QOT in 2009 by guest author Srikanth, and has been fully updated for 2026.
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How to convert youtube to mp3? Download your favorite Youtube videos as mp3 files without registration. Easy way to convert youtube to mp3 with us.
As for me, for unlimited (up to 10 Gb) video conversion I’m using hdconvert.com
Nice article, thanks. I am using https://go4convert.com/ for ipad ebook and pdf conversions.
Thanks for the big list. I feel kind of missed out (I know this was back in 2009). I hope our site will be included in your next list :).
That is a very useful list, thanks a lot for putting this together.
How about a list of downloadable programs?
I’ve been using https://www.smartpdfcreator.com/
It creates PDF files from a wide range of formats and it’s quite quick and easy.
Their free version does not expire.
wow,a really good article!
I also would like to share a good site about PDF convertion,which has a amazing PDF to Word Converter.
http://www.allpdftools.com/pdf-to-word-converter.html
I think it will help a lot!