How to open a .pkl file
Quick, free ways to open Pickle on any system.
A .pkl file is a Python Pickle File. If double-clicking does nothing, your computer simply does not have an app that reads Pickle yet. Here is how to fix that on each operating system, using free software wherever possible.
Open a .pkl file step by step
- Confirm the file really is a .pkl. Drop it into the WhatFileType file identifier, which reads its signature without uploading anything.
- On Windows, open it with Python (pickle.load) or Jupyter.
- On Mac, use Python (pickle.load) or Jupyter.
- On Linux, try Python (pickle.load) or Jupyter.
- Still stuck? Convert the .pkl to json, which opens more widely.
Best apps to open .pkl files
Windows
- Python (pickle.load)
- Jupyter
macOS
- Python (pickle.load)
- Jupyter
Linux
- Python (pickle.load)
- Jupyter
!
Before you open it: Risky. Loading a pickle executes code inside it, so a malicious .pkl can run anything. Never unpickle a file from an untrusted source; prefer safetensors or JSON for sharing.
Frequently asked questions
Why can't I open my .pkl file?
Almost always because no installed app understands Pickle. Install one of the apps above, or convert the file to a format your existing software already reads.
How do I open a .pkl file?
In Python, pickle.load() reads it back into an object. Only do this for files you trust, because loading a pickle can run arbitrary code.
Is it safe to open a pickle file?
Not from untrusted sources. Unpickling executes embedded code, a known attack vector. For shared model weights, safetensors is the safe alternative.