DBT File

What are DBT files and how to open them

Are you having problems opening a DBT 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 DBT files.

What is a DBT file?

A .DBT file is a DBase Text Field Value file.

A DBase Text Field Value File (with extension .DBT) is a companion file used by the dBASE database management system to store memo or text fields that are too large for the main table file (.DBF). When a database table contains a memo-type field - one that can hold large blocks of text or long notes - the DBF file does not store that full content directly; instead it stores a reference into the .DBT file, which holds the actual memo text. The DBT file thus allows large text entries to be kept alongside structured table data without bloating the DBF file.

When dBASE creates or updates a table that has memo fields, it writes the memo content into the .DBT file in fixed-size blocks. The .DBF file contains a numeric pointer indicating which block in the DBT file holds the start of each memo entry. Empty memo fields appear as blanks in the DBF. Applications that open the database read or modify the memo content via these pointers rather than reading from the DBT file directly. If a memo is deleted or changed, older versions of dBASE append new data at the end of the DBT file (so the file grows), though newer versions may reuse space freed by deleted memos.

The DBT file is organized in sequential blocks. Block 0 contains the DBT file header. The size of blocks is determined by a parameter (often SET BLOCKSIZE). Each memo field in the DBF contains a 10-byte pointer to the starting block. If a field has no content, that pointer is replaced by blank characters (0x20). The end of the DBT file is marked by a single byte with value 0x1A.

How to open DBT files

We have identified one DBT opener that is compatible with this specific type of DBT file.

Programs that open DBase Text Field Value files

Last updated: August 5, 2026

Various apps that use files with this extension

These apps are known to open certain types of DBT files. Remember, different programs may use DBT 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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