IQM Converter
FileFlip converts IQM files into 14 other formats entirely inside your browser, using Assimp compiled to WebAssembly. The IQM file is never uploaded to a server: it is read off your disk, converted on your own machine, and saved back by the browser. There is no file-size limit and no account to create.
How do I convert an IQM file?#
- Drop your IQM file onto the converter at the top of this page, or click it to pick one from your computer.
- Choose the format you want out of it. FileFlip downloads the engine that conversion needs, once, and your browser caches it.
- Conversion starts the moment you pick the format, and the result is yours to download. The work happens in this tab, so nothing is uploaded and nothing is queued.
Is it safe to convert IQM files online?#
Yes, because nothing is uploaded. FileFlip converts IQM files inside the browser tab you already have open, using WebAssembly builds of the same engines a desktop converter would install. Your file is read from your own disk into the page's memory, and no request carrying it is ever made.
You do not have to take that on trust. Open your browser's network panel, run a conversion, and you will see the engine come down and your file go nowhere. There is no upload, no server-side copy, no retention window, and no account tied to what you converted.
How FileFlip works lists every engine, its version and its download size, and shows how to check for yourself that nothing leaves your machine.
What happens to a IQM file#
FileFlip converts IQM into 14 formats with Assimp, all of it inside the browser tab. Each conversion below names the engine it uses, what it downloads, and exactly what that conversion keeps or drops.
| Category | 3D Models |
|---|---|
| File extension | .iqm |
| FileFlip support | Read only, so it is a source rather than a target |
| Conversions available | 14 |
| Engines | Assimp |
| Downloaded to your browser | 11.2 MB on the first conversion, then cached |
What is an IQM file?#
An IQM file is a compact binary model written by Lee Salzman's Inter-Quake Model tools, laying out a header of section offsets followed by aligned arrays of vertex data, joints, poses, animations and per-frame bounds so an engine can read it with minimal parsing.
Use IQM when a game engine needs a skeletal model format it can load with minimal, predictable parsing code.
Convert IQM to FBX or glTF when the model needs to go into a mainstream DCC tool or engine that doesn't already have IQM support built in.
The IQM file format reference covers the specification, the programs that open one, and what each conversion keeps or drops.
IQM questions people ask#
What is an IQM file?
An IQM file is a binary 3D model in the Inter-Quake Model format, storing meshes, a skeleton, blend weights and animations in a compact, aligned layout designed for a game engine to load quickly. Lee Salzman created it as an open, engine-agnostic successor to the various id Tech model formats.
What's the difference between IQM and IQE?
IQM is the compact binary format engines load at runtime, while IQE is a plain-text version of the same data meant for editing and for compiling from other formats. Tools convert IQE, or formats like OBJ, SMD and MD5, into IQM as a build step.
What software can open IQM files?
Blender reads and writes IQM through a dedicated import/export add-on, and a handful of open-source game engines built on the format load it natively. Mainstream commercial 3D tools generally don't support IQM without that add-on.