Converting DXF to GPX moves CAD points and lines into the GPS Exchange format.
What is DXF?
DXF (Drawing Exchange Format) is an open CAD data format created by Autodesk for exchanging drawings between AutoCAD and other CAD applications.
DXF stores CAD entities — points, lines, polylines, arcs, circles, text and blocks — organized on named layers. Unlike GIS formats it has no attribute table, so geometry and layer names come across but arbitrary feature attributes do not. It is the common interchange format for survey drawings, site plans, and engineering geometry moving between CAD tools such as AutoCAD, and into GIS via GDAL. GeoConvert reads and writes DXF entirely in your browser.
What is GPX?
GPX (GPS Exchange Format) is an open, XML-based schema for exchanging GPS data such as waypoints, routes, and tracks between devices and applications.
GPX models data through three primary elements: waypoints (individual named points of interest), routes (an ordered list of routepoints describing a planned path), and tracks (recorded paths made of one or more segments of trackpoints, often carrying timestamps and elevation). It is the common tongue of handheld GPS units, fitness watches, and outdoor apps like Garmin, Strava, and Komoot. It is a point- and line-oriented format built around navigation, not a general-purpose polygon or attribute-table format.
Why convert DXF to GPX?
GPX is what handheld GPS units and outdoor apps read, so this can push surveyed points or a designed path from a drawing onto a GPS device or navigation app.
Coordinate systems
DXF is a CAD format and carries no coordinate reference system — coordinates are plain model units. When converting to or from GIS formats you often need to know (or assign) the drawing’s real-world CRS; GeoConvert assumes WGS84 (EPSG:4326) only if you ask to reproject.
The GPX specification fixes all coordinates to WGS84 latitude/longitude with elevation in meters, so like KML it carries no projection information and any exported data is expressed in EPSG:4326.
What to watch out for
- GPX is WGS84 only and DXF has no CRS, so the drawing must be georeferenced to a real coordinate system first.
- GPX represents waypoints and tracks (points and lines) only — polygons and CAD-specific entities don’t map.
- CAD attributes are not preserved.
How to convert DXF to GPX
- Drag your DXF file (.dxf) into the converter above, or click to browse.
- Confirm the source is DXF and choose GPX as the output format.
- Optionally pick a target coordinate system (EPSG) to reproject.
- Click Convert and download your GPX file. Everything runs in your browser.
Frequently asked questions
- Can polygons go into GPX?
- No. GPX only models waypoints, routes, and tracks, so area geometry can’t be represented.
- Do I need to set a CRS?
- Yes — since DXF has no CRS, reproject to WGS84 from the drawing’s real coordinate system for GPX to be meaningful.