How to view a schematic
- 1
Get the file
WorldEdit and FAWE save to plugins/WorldEdit/schematics on a server, or config/worldedit/schematics on a client. Map sites usually offer a .schem or .schematic download.
- 2
Drop it in
Drag the file onto the viewer or tap to pick it. The tool reads the format by itself: new Sponge .schem, old numeric-ID .schematic or a structure block .nbt.
- 3
Inspect it
Orbit and zoom the build, read its width, height and length, and move the layer slider to see inside walls, floors and redstone rooms.
- 4
Export or plan
Save a CSV of the blocks, a PNG picture, or the build as OBJ + MTL or GLB to render it, print it or bring it into another engine.
Private by design. Your schematic is opened by code running in this browser tab. It is never uploaded, stored or shared, and the page needs no account. Close the tab and nothing is left behind.
.schem vs .schematic: which one do you have?
.schematicMCEdit / legacy- The original format from MCEdit and WorldEdit before Minecraft 1.13. Blocks are stored as numeric IDs (1 = stone, 35 = wool) with a 0-15 data value for colour or direction. The viewer turns those numbers back into block names, including wool, stained glass, logs and stone variants.
.schemSponge schematic- The format WorldEdit 7 and FAWE use since 1.13. Blocks are named states like minecraft:spruce_stairs[facing=east] in a palette, and the positions are stored as compact varints. Versions 1, 2 and the newer version 3 (WorldEdit for 1.20.4 and later) are read.
.nbtStructure block- Minecraft's own structure files, saved by a structure block or found in data packs. They list each block with its position and palette entry.
.litematicLitematica- Files from the Litematica mod open here too. The Litematic Viewer page covers their multi-region layout.
Opening old .schematic files
Many classic builds, adventure maps and server lobbies from 2011 to 2018 were shared as .schematic files. Newer tools often refuse them, because the format stores numbers instead of names and Minecraft 1.13 renamed almost every block. This viewer keeps a table of the old numeric IDs and their data values, so a block saved as 35:14 shows up as red wool and 17:2 as a birch log.
Files saved by Schematica or newer WorldEdit builds sometimes include their own ID-to-name table. When it is there, the viewer uses it first, which also covers blocks added by mods. Any ID the viewer does not know is shown in a neutral colour and listed in the notes, so nothing is silently dropped.
Turning a schematic into OBJ or GLB
People convert schematics to 3D models to render a build in Blender, show it on a website, 3D print a server spawn, or bring it into a game engine. The export here writes one mesh and one material per block type, with 1 unit per block and Y pointing up. Only the outside faces are kept, so a solid wall is a few quads instead of thousands of hidden cubes, and the file stays small enough to open quickly.
The export follows the layer view. If you only show layers 1 to 20 when you press the button, you get those 20 layers. That makes cross-section models easy: show the ground floor, export it, then the first floor, and so on. For printing, open the OBJ in your slicer and scale it so one block is the size you want, for example 2 mm.
Checking a build before you paste it
Pasting a schematic that is bigger than you thought can flatten part of a world or stall a server. The size readout shows the exact box the paste will fill, and the shown block count tells you how much WorldEdit will have to place. The block list helps spot surprises too: command blocks, TNT, barriers or lava you did not expect will appear in the list before you paste anything.
What the schematic viewer handles
Legacy MCEdit .schematic
Numeric block IDs and data values mapped back to named blocks, plus SchematicaMapping tables.
Sponge .schem v1, v2 and v3
WorldEdit and FAWE files from 1.13 up to current versions.
Structure block .nbt
Vanilla structure files and data pack structures.
Layer view
Cut the build at any height, or show one layer at a time to copy it.
Schematic to OBJ and GLB
Surface-only mesh, one material per block type, 1 unit per block.
Block list and CSV
Counts and stacks for every block, following the current layer view.
Limits, honestly
- Blocks are drawn as flat colours from our own palette, not Minecraft textures; stairs, doors and other detailed blocks are shown as simple boxes.
- Entities, chest contents, sign text and biome data are not shown.
- Modded blocks in a legacy file without an ID table show in a neutral grey and are listed as unknown IDs.
- Very large schematics (more than about 6 million visible faces) open a few layers at a time; the slider moves through the rest.
- Bedrock .mcstructure files and Minecraft world folders (region .mca files) are not supported.