MAT to VIFF Converter
Processing entirely on your device — large files may take a moment.
MATLAB Image and Khoros Visualization Image exist for different jobs: MAT is the MATLAB workspace image format — arrays saved by MATLAB and scientific tools, often holding raster frames from simulations or sensors alongside numeric data. Convert legacy VIFF datasets to PNG for modern viewing and notebooks.
Because the whole conversion happens on your device, it is instant, unlimited and genuinely private — no accounts, no watermarks, no files on anyone's server. Multiple files are converted in one go.
How MAT compares to VIFF
| MAT | VIFF | |
|---|---|---|
| Compression | None / zlib level 9 | None (uncompressed) |
| Transparency | Not supported | Supported |
| Animation | Not supported | Not supported |
| Metadata | Variable names and workspace metadata | Attribute lists |
| Best for | Simulation frames, sensor arrays | Legacy scientific datasets |
How to convert MAT to VIFF
- 1
Select your files
Drag & drop your MAT files onto the area above, or click to browse. You can add multiple files at once for batch conversion.
- 2
Convert instantly
Click "Convert to VIFF". The conversion runs entirely inside your browser using WebAssembly — no upload, no queue, no waiting.
- 3
Download results
Download each converted VIFF file individually, or grab everything at once as a ZIP archive.
About the MAT format
MAT is the workspace format of MATLAB and its open-source sibling Octave. Image data shows up inside MAT files as numeric arrays — simulation frames, sensor captures, processed microscopy — usually alongside the variables and metadata a research script produced with them.
Converting the image arrays inside a MAT file to PNG makes them viewable and shareable without MATLAB — useful for reports, papers and collaborations where colleagues do not have a MATLAB license.
+Strengths
- ✓Carries numeric precision end to end
- ✓Pairs image data with research variables
- ✓Octave compatibility (open tooling)
!Limitations
- −Requires MATLAB/Octave to open
- −Not an image container by design
About the VIFF format
VIFF is the image format of the Khoros software system, a visual-programming environment built for scientific image processing in the late 1980s and 1990s. Its files carry raster data plus optional attribute lists, and it survives today mostly in older academic datasets and image-processing course material.
Modern software rarely opens VIFF without help. Converting VIFF to PNG puts legacy research imagery into a format every viewer, notebook and browser understands — useful when reviving old datasets or coursework.
+Strengths
- ✓Holds multi-band scientific raster data
- ✓Attribute lists travel with the image
- ✓Simple, fully documented binary layout
!Limitations
- −Tied to discontinued Khoros tooling
- −No browser or OS support
Why convert MAT to VIFF?
There is a concrete reason this conversion exists: Requires MATLAB/Octave to open VIFF sidesteps that — Holds multi-band scientific raster data If that is your situation, the tool above settles it in seconds, entirely on your device.
Frequently asked questions
Is this MAT to VIFF converter really free?
Yes — completely free, with no sign-up, no watermark and no daily conversion limits. The site is supported by advertising.
Are my files uploaded to a server?
No. The conversion runs entirely inside your browser using WebAssembly, so your files never leave your device — that is what makes it instant and private.
Does it work on Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android?
Yes. Anything with a modern browser works: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS. No software installation is required.
Will I lose quality converting MAT to VIFF?
No — VIFF is a lossless format, so every pixel of the converted image matches your original MAT file. You can also adjust the quality/size balance before converting when the target format supports compression.
Will transparent areas survive the conversion to VIFF?
Transparency is kept whenever VIFF actually supports an alpha channel. If the target format has none (like JPG), transparent areas are flattened onto a white background — that is a property of the format, not of this tool.
What happens to EXIF data and other metadata?
Conversions here re-encode the image, and re-encoding generally does not carry the original metadata over. If the EXIF data of your MAT files matters (camera model, GPS, timestamps), keep the original file as the master and treat the converted copy as the shareable version.