What is a .skp file?
SketchUp Model · 3D model · Trimble (originally @Last Software / Google) · 2000
A .skp file is a SketchUp model, the native format of the popular 3D modelling tool used in architecture, interior design and woodworking. It stores the geometry, materials and components of a design.
What is a .skp file used for?
SketchUp is known for approachable push-pull modelling, so .skp files are common in architecture and DIY design. The format is proprietary and version-specific: a newer .skp may not open in an older SketchUp.
To share a model outside SketchUp, export to a neutral format like COLLADA (.dae), OBJ or glTF. Free viewers and the web-based SketchUp can open .skp files.
What opens a .skp file?
The .skp format opens in the following apps, grouped by operating system. If one app does not work, try another from the same list.
Windows
- SketchUp
- SketchUp Viewer
- Trimble Connect
macOS
- SketchUp
- SketchUp Viewer
Linux
- SketchUp for Web (browser)
Web
- SketchUp for Web
Open a .skp file step by step
- Confirm the file really is a .skp. Drop it into the WhatFileType identifier, which reads its signature in your browser without uploading anything.
- On Windows, open it with SketchUp or SketchUp Viewer.
- On Mac, use SketchUp or SketchUp Viewer.
- On Linux, try SketchUp for Web (browser).
- Still stuck? Convert the .skp to dae, which opens more widely.
Why can't I open my .skp file?
Almost always because no installed app understands SketchUp. Install one of the apps above, or convert the file to a format your existing software already reads. If double-clicking opens the wrong program instead of nothing at all, the file association is set to the wrong app rather than the file being broken.
The other possibility is that the file is not really a .skp at all. Drop it into the file identifier to check it by its bytes instead of its name. Nothing is uploaded.
How to convert a .skp file
You can convert a .skp file to dae, obj, gltf, stl using a conversion tool or the export menu of an app that opens it.
SketchUp has no fixed magic number, so there is no signature table on this page. Its bytes alone do not prove the format: identification relies on the extension, the structure of the content and the program that created it. The magic-numbers reference lists the formats that do carry one.
Frequently asked questions
What is a .skp file?
A .skp file is a SketchUp model, the native format of the popular 3D modelling tool used in architecture, interior design and woodworking. It stores the geometry, materials and components of a design.
How do I open a .skp file without SketchUp?
Use the free SketchUp for Web in a browser or the SketchUp Viewer. Or ask for an export to .dae, .obj or .gltf, which open in Blender and others.
Why won't my .skp file open?
Often a version mismatch: files saved in a newer SketchUp may not open in an older one. Use a current viewer, or have the file saved in an older version.
Can Blender open a .skp file?
Not directly. Export the model from SketchUp to COLLADA (.dae) or glTF first, then import that into Blender.
Related formats
Sources
Details on this page were checked against authoritative references. How sources are ranked and what is deliberately left out is set out in the methodology.