ANZ File

What are ANZ files and how to open them

Are you having problems opening an ANZ file or are you simply curious about its contents? We're here to explain the properties of these files and provide you with software that can open or handle your ANZ files.

What is an ANZ file?

An .ANZ file is an ENVI Annotations file.

ENVI Annotations files hold layers of visual and textual notes that a user adds over an image inside ENVI EX or ENVI. These annotations can highlight features, mark areas, draw shapes, include legends or color ramps, and are saved separately so that they can be toggled on or off without altering the main imagery.

The files are written by ENVI when saving annotation layers. A user creates or modifies an annotation layer via ENVI EX or ENVI, then uses the Save or Save As function to write the layer out as an annotation file. Once saved, the annotations can be reopened, edited (though editing the original file sometimes requires saving to a new file), or simply displayed over the associated image. Annotations include types like text, symbols, polygons, rectangles, arrows, scale bars, picture inserts, legends, color ramps, and more.

The format is proprietary to NV5 Geospatial Solutions' ENVI image analysis software. When working with the Deep Learning tools, annotated shapes like bounding boxes created through the labeling interface are stored in this format and later translated into GeoJSON‐style data during training steps.

Every ENVI Annotations file begins with an identifiable signature: it starts with the ASCII characters "TESS" at byte offset zero. Within the file are keyword strings such as IDLITPROPERTYDESCRIPTORVERSION, RECTANGLE ANNOTATION DATA, IDLCFSYMOLOGYPOLYGON, LATITUDE_OF_ORIGIN, PROJNAME, and ENVIPROJTYPE among others, which serve as internal identifiers.

How to open ANZ files

Important: Different programs may use files with the ANZ file extension for different purposes, so unless you are sure which format your ANZ file is, you may need to try a few different programs.

We have not yet verified any programs for Windows that work with this specific file format. If you know one, please use the 'Suggest a program' link below. Thanks!

Last updated: August 18, 2026

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