What Is a .blend File? .blend Format, MIME & How to Open

Quick facts

Extension.blend

File typeBlender Project

MIME typeapplication/x-blender

CategoryData & Text

Charset—

Compressible—

Format familyblend

What is .blend

What is a .blend file?

A .blend file is a Blender Project — Blender 3D project file.

In the mime-db registry it maps to application/x-blender. When serving .blend over HTTP, set the Content-Type header as shown in Developer info below.

Related entities: it maps to application/x-blender — and is delivered over HTTP via the Content-Type header.

How to open .blend files

Use VS Code or Notepad++ to open and edit .blend files.
Any text editor (Notepad, VS Code) can inspect the raw content as text.

Developer info

When served over HTTP, responses should set the following header:

Content-Type: application/x-blender

Common software that reads/writes .blend:

Blender

Relation chain

.blendextension of

format

blendserved as

mime type

application/x-blendersent via header

http header

Related extensions

Related MIME types

application/x-blender

.blend

Common uses

Configuration files
Data interchange between systems
API request and response payloads
Logs and data exports

How to edit .blend files

Open the file with Blender, make your changes and save.
Most editors preserve the original formatting and encoding — avoid changing the charset.

How to create .blend files

Create a new file and save it with the .blend extension, or export this format from Blender.

Frequently asked questions

What programs can open .blend files?

Common options include Blender. You can also open many of these files with built-in viewers or a browser.

How do I create a .blend file?

Create a new file in any text editor or the app that owns the format and save it with the .blend extension.

What is the relationship between .blend and the application/x-blender MIME type?

application/x-blender is the media type identifier used for .blend files during network transfer (for example in the HTTP Content-Type header).

Sources & standards

Updated 2026-09-13

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