INDD File: What It Is and How to Open One (2024)

This article explains what an INDD file is and how to open and convert one.

What Is an INDD File?

A file with the INDD file extension is an InDesign document that's most commonly created by and used in Adobe InDesign. The file stores page content, formatting information, files, and more.

InDesign uses these files when producing newspapers, books, brochures, and other professional layouts.

Some InDesign Document files may use just three letters in the file extension, as .IND, but they're still in the same format.

How to Open an INDD File

Adobe InDesign is the primary software used to work with INDD files. However, you can also view one with Adobe InCopy andQuarkXPress (you might also need the ID2Q plugin).

Photopea is a free tool that lets you open INDD files without InDesign.

How to Convert an INDD File

Using an INDD viewer or editor from above will let you convert the INDD file to another format, but as you'll see below, some conversions require a bit more work.

The most common file type to convert an INDD file to is PDF. Photopea and InDesign can do that.

Also within InDesign, under the File > Export menu, is the option to export the file to JPG, EPS, EPUB, SWF, FLA, HTML, XML, and IDML. Change the "Save as type" option to pick the export format.

You can also convert the INDD file to a Microsoft Word format like DOC or DOCX, but the formatting differences will likely make the result look a bit off. However, if you want to do this, you should first export the INDD to PDF, then plug that into a PDF to Word converter to finish the conversion.

InDesign doesn't have a specific INDD to PPTX export option for using the document with PowerPoint. However, similar to how it works to use the file with Word, start by exporting it to PDF. Then, open the PDF file with Adobe Acrobat and use the File > Save As Other option to convert it to a PPTX file.

iXentric SaveBack converts INDD to IDML if you need to use the file in InDesign CS4 and newer. IDML files are ZIP-compressed Adobe InDesign markup language files that use XML to represent the document. This service works online, but it isn't free.

If you're on a Mac, the file can be converted to PSD for use in Adobe Photoshop. However, you can't do this with InDesign or any of the other programs mentioned above. See How to Save InDesign Files as Layered Photoshop Files for information on a Mac script that can make this happen.

Still Can't Open the File?

If none of the programs mentioned above let you open the file you have, it's possible that it's in a different format and just looks like an INDD file.

For example, PDD and IDX share some of the same file extension letters but they're in entirely different file formats. Just because they appear similar to INDD doesn't necessarily mean that they can be opened with the same programs.

Many other examples could be given but the idea is the same: make sure the file extension actually reads as "INDD" and not just something that looks similar or shares some of the same characters.

If you don't have an INDD file, research the real extension for your file to learn more about its format and the program you need to open it.