File Type & Hex Inspector

See a file’s TRUE type from its magic bytes (not the extension) plus a hex dump — read locally.

See a file's true type from its magic bytes — not the extension — plus a hex dump. Free in-browser hex viewer and file checker; nothing uploaded.

About File Type & Hex Inspector

File Type & Hex Inspector is a free, browser-based tool that reveals a file's TRUE type from its magic bytes (file signature) instead of trusting the extension, and shows a classic hex dump alongside it. Drop any file and it reports the detected type, size, and the browser's declared MIME, flags when the extension contradicts the real bytes, and renders a 16-bytes-per-row hex/ASCII dump you can copy. Detection uses a hand-written magic-byte table (no external library) covering common formats like PDF, JPEG, PNG, GIF, ZIP/Office, MP4/MOV, HEIC, MP3, and more. Everything runs locally in your browser — only the first 8 KB of the file are read, nothing is uploaded, and there is no signup.

How to use File Type & Hex Inspector

  1. Drop any file onto the drop zone, or click to browse and select one.
  2. Read the top stat row: Detected type (from magic bytes), Size, and the Browser MIME the OS declared.
  3. Check the Signature line for the real extension and MIME the bytes correspond to.
  4. Watch for the warning banner — it appears if the file's extension contradicts its actual bytes, hinting at a mislabeled or disguised file.
  5. Scroll the Hex dump panel to read the raw bytes in offset / hex / ASCII columns.
  6. Click the copy button on the hex dump to copy the dump text for notes or a bug report.

Frequently asked questions

Are my files uploaded to a server?
No. The file is read entirely in your browser — only its first 8 KB are inspected to detect the type and build the hex dump, and nothing is ever uploaded.
Is it free and do I need an account?
Yes, it's completely free with no signup, account, or watermark.
How does it detect the file type if the extension is wrong?
It reads the file's leading 'magic bytes' (its signature) and matches them against a built-in table, so a .jpg that is really a PNG, or an .mp4 that is really a HEIC, is identified by its actual content rather than its name.
Which file formats can it identify?
Common ones including PDF, JPEG, PNG, GIF, BMP, TIFF, ICO, WebP, HEIC, gzip, bzip2, 7-Zip, RAR, ZIP (and ZIP-based .docx/.xlsx/.odt/.jar), MP3, Ogg, FLAC, WAV, MP4, MOV, AVI, PostScript, ELF, and Windows EXE.
Why does the hex dump stop partway through a large file?
Only the first 8 KB are read and dumped so a huge file won't freeze the tab; when a file is larger than that, a notice tells you it's showing the first 8 KB of the total size.
What happens if no signature is recognized?
It shows the type as Unknown with a note that the file may be plain text, a custom format, or an uncommon type that has no known magic-byte signature.

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