PFM to CUR Converter
Processing entirely on your device — large files may take a moment.
Portable Float Map and Windows Cursor exist for different jobs: PFM (Portable Float Map) stores pixels as raw 32-bit floats — the lossless hand-off format for HDR pipelines, radiance research and render passes, riding the same family spirit as PBM/PGM/PPM. Converting CUR to PNG lets you view and reuse cursor graphics in design tools.
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 PFM compares to CUR
| PFM | CUR | |
|---|---|---|
| Compression | None (raw floats) | BMP/PNG members (as ICO) |
| Transparency | Not supported | Supported |
| Animation | Not supported | No (that is .ani) |
| Metadata | Minimal header only | Hotspot coordinates |
| Best for | HDR interchange, render passes | Windows cursors and UI assets |
How to convert PFM to CUR
- 1
Select your files
Drag & drop your PFM 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 CUR". The conversion runs entirely inside your browser using WebAssembly — no upload, no queue, no waiting.
- 3
Download results
Download each converted CUR file individually, or grab everything at once as a ZIP archive.
About the PFM format
PFM (Portable Float Map) stores pixels as raw 32-bit floating-point values — no palette, no compression tricks, just the numbers. It belongs to the Netpbm family (PBM/PGM/PPM) and is the lingua franca for handing high-dynamic-range data between renderers, tone-mapping experiments and radiance research scripts.
Because the values are floats, a PFM can hold sunlight and candlelight in the same image without clipping. Viewers rarely open it directly: convert to PNG or JPG to get a tone-mapped preview of the same data.
+Strengths
- ✓Full floating-point precision
- ✓Dead-simple text/binary layout
- ✓Widely read by research tooling
!Limitations
- −Enormous files (16 bytes per pixel)
- −Almost no viewer support
About the CUR format
CUR is the Windows cursor file: structurally identical to ICO (several small bitmap sizes bundled), with the addition of a hotspot coordinate that marks which pixel is the pointer's tip. Windows ships most of its system cursors as CUR files.
Designers customizing cursors or extracting UI assets meet CUR files that no modern image tool opens. Converting to PNG (the largest embedded size) makes them editable, viewable and reusable in web apps that implement custom cursors.
+Strengths
- ✓Windows cursor standard
- ✓Multiple sizes in one file
- ✓Hotspot data travels with the image
!Limitations
- −Tiny sizes only (usually ≤48px)
- −Meaningless outside cursor use
Why convert PFM to CUR?
Think of it as moving your file to the container that fits the job. Enormous files (16 bytes per pixel) CUR works differently: Windows cursor standard If any of that sounds like your task, run the conversion — it takes seconds and nothing leaves your device.
Frequently asked questions
Is this PFM to CUR 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 PFM to CUR?
No — CUR is a lossless format, so every pixel of the converted image matches your original PFM file. You can also adjust the quality/size balance before converting when the target format supports compression.
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 PFM files matters (camera model, GPS, timestamps), keep the original file as the master and treat the converted copy as the shareable version.
Will transparent areas survive the conversion to CUR?
Transparency is kept whenever CUR 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.