An NWD is a published Autodesk Navisworks document: a single self-contained file holding a whole coordination model — all its geometry and object properties baked in — meant for reviewing and sharing, not editing.
NWD is the "finished, send it out" format of Navisworks. It is a snapshot: everything needed to open and review the model is inside the one file, frozen at the moment it was published.
What's inside an NWD
- Geometry for every element in the model, often federated from many source files (Revit, AutoCAD, Tekla, MicroStation and others) into one.
- Object properties — the data attached to each element: identifiers, materials, dimensions, whatever the source models carried.
- Review data — saved viewpoints, markups, clash results and comments, depending on how it was published.
Because it is self-contained, an NWD is what gets handed over at a coordination milestone, sent to a client, or archived. That is also why so many end up stranded: the recipient often has no Navisworks.
Who makes NWD files, and why
BIM coordinators and design managers publish them from Navisworks Manage or Simulate to freeze and share a federated model — one file anyone can open in Navisworks to review, without needing the dozens of native source files behind it.
NWD vs NWC vs NWF
Three Navisworks extensions, easy to mix up: NWC is a per-model cache, NWD is the published document above, and NWF is a lightweight file that only references the source models rather than containing them. Full breakdown: NWD vs NWC vs NWF.
How to open an NWD
Navisworks opens it directly, including the free Freedom viewer. To open it in anything else — or to get the data out — convert it to IFC. Both routes are laid out in how to open an NWD file.
How to convert an NWD
Navisworks cannot export IFC, so you convert the file directly. Veksle converts the NWD to IFC4 in the browser — see convert NWD to IFC.
Turn your NWD into something you can open
Convert it to IFC in the browser — free, no Navisworks, nothing to install.
OPEN THE CONVERTER ▸FAQ
What does NWD stand for?
It is the extension for a Navisworks Document — a published, self-contained Navisworks model file. Autodesk does not expand it as words beyond that.
What program opens an NWD file?
Autodesk Navisworks — Manage, Simulate, or the free Freedom viewer. To use the model elsewhere, convert it to IFC first.
Is an NWD editable?
Not as a design model. It is a published snapshot for review and coordination — you review, mark up and measure it, but you do not author geometry in it.
How big are NWD files?
Anywhere from a few MB to well over a gigabyte, depending on how much of a federated model is baked in.
Can I convert an NWD to IFC?
Yes — not from inside Navisworks, but by converting it with a standalone tool. Veksle does this in the browser and produces IFC4.