DAE File

What are DAE files and how to open them

Are you having problems opening a DAE 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 DAE files.

What is a DAE file?

A .DAE file is a COLLADA Digital Asset file.

COLLADA Digital Asset File is an XML-based format used for describing and exchanging 3D digital assets between content creation tools. It was developed by Sony Computer Entertainment and is now maintained by the Khronos Group as an open standard. The format is primarily intended for use in workflows where geometry, materials, textures, animation, physics, and visual scenes created in one application need to be transferred to another in a way that preserves detail and metadata.

The format is produced by exporting from digital content creation tools (such as modeling, animation, CAD software) and consumed by other tools in the asset pipeline - including game engines, real-time renderers, visualization software, or further content processing tools. It acts as an interchange or intermediate format rather than a delivery format; it is not optimized for final rendering in target engines but ensures assets retain full fidelity during transfer.

Internally the file is a well-formed XML document whose root element is COLLADA. The document includes version and namespace declarations in the COLLADA tag, an <asset> section with metadata such as creation time, authoring tool, units and up_axis, library sections like <library_geometries>, <library_materials>, and <library_visual_scenes> to hold the core data, followed by a <scene> section. Valid versions include 1.4.0, 1.4.1, and in newer releases 1.5.0 / 1.5.1.

Files begin with the standard XML declaration, for example <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>, followed by <COLLADA xmlns="http://www.collada.org/… COLLADASchema" version="X.Y.Z">. The namespace URI and version attribute in the COLLADA element are key identifiers.

How to open DAE files

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

While we have not verified the apps ourselves yet, our users have suggested ten different DAE openers which you will find listed below.

Last updated: September 21, 2026

Various apps that use files with this extension

These apps are known to open certain types of DAE files. Remember, different programs may use DAE files for different purposes, so you may need to try out a few of them to be able to open your specific file.

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