Multi-Page TIFF Viewer
Many scanners, fax services and document archives save several pages in one TIFF file, which most photo apps only show the first page of. Open the file here to page through every image with thumbnails, zoom in on details, fix rotated pages and export what you need as PNG or PDF.
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How to use the Multi-Page TIFF Viewer
- Open your TIFF by dropping it on the box or clicking Open TIFF file. Open a sample fax shows a three-page example.
- Flip through the pages with the thumbnails, the arrow buttons, the page number box or the arrow keys when the page view is focused.
- Zoom and rotate: use Fit page, Fit width, 100% or the + and − buttons, and the rotate buttons for sideways scans (tick Rotate all pages to turn every page).
- Check the page details under the view: pixel size, DPI, printed size and compression.
- Export the current page as PNG, every page as PNG files in a ZIP, or all or one page as a PDF.
How a multi-page TIFF is organized
A TIFF file starts with an 8-byte header that says whether numbers are stored little-endian (II) or big-endian (MM) and where the first image file directory (IFD) is. Each IFD is a list of tags describing one image: width (tag 256), height (257), bits per sample (258), compression (259), photometric interpretation (262), where the strips or tiles of pixel data are (273/279 or 324/325), the X and Y resolution (282/283) and more. The last four bytes of an IFD point to the next one, which is how many pages fit in one file. The viewer reads that chain, decodes the page you are looking at and keeps a few recent pages in memory.
Common TIFF compressions
| Code | Name | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Uncompressed | Raw scans, scientific images |
| 2 | CCITT Modified Huffman (RLE) | Older black-and-white document scans |
| 3 | CCITT Group 3 (T.4) | Fax machines and fax-to-email services |
| 4 | CCITT Group 4 (T.6) | Black-and-white document archives; very small files |
| 5 | LZW | Lossless color and grayscale scans |
| 7 | JPEG | Color scans where small size matters |
| 8 / 32946 | Deflate (ZIP) | Lossless images from modern software |
| 32773 | PackBits | Older Mac and print software |
Fax resolutions
| Mode | Horizontal | Vertical | Pixel shape |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | 204 DPI (8 dots/mm) | 98 lines per inch (3.85 lines/mm) | About 2.1 times taller than wide |
| Fine | 204 DPI | 196 lines per inch (7.7 lines/mm) | Almost square |
| Superfine | 204 or 408 DPI | 391 lines per inch (15.4 lines/mm) | Square at 408 × 391 |
A standard fax page of US Letter or A4 width is 1728 pixels wide. If a fax looks stretched or squashed, toggle Correct fax aspect ratio.
Tips
- Use Fit width for reading text-heavy pages, then scroll down the page.
- Scanned sideways? Rotate the page, then export: the PNG and PDF files keep the new orientation.
- To convert many TIFF files without viewing them, use TIFF to PDF or TIFF to JPG.
Frequently asked questions
Why does my TIFF only show one page in other apps?
A TIFF file can hold many images, each described by its own image file directory (IFD) that points to the next one. Many photo viewers and web browsers only read the first directory. This viewer follows the whole chain and lists every page, while skipping reduced-resolution preview images that some scanners add.
Can it open fax TIFF files?
Yes. Fax services usually save TIFF files with CCITT Group 3 (T.4) or Group 4 (T.6) compression, which most browsers cannot display. The viewer has its own decoder for Modified Huffman, Group 3 one- and two-dimensional and Group 4 data, so fax pages open instantly and offline.
Why do fax pages look squashed?
Standard-resolution fax scans 204 dots per inch across the page but only 98 lines per inch down the page, so each pixel is about twice as tall as it is wide. Shown with square pixels the page looks half as tall as it should. With Correct fax aspect ratio ticked, the viewer reads the X and Y resolution tags and stretches the page to its true proportions; exports use the corrected shape too. Fine-mode faxes (204 × 196) need almost no correction.
Can I save a multi-page TIFF as PDF?
Yes. Convert to PDF puts every page (or only the current page) into one PDF, with rotation and aspect correction applied and the page size calculated from the DPI stored in the file. Black-and-white pages are embedded losslessly; photo pages are stored as high-quality JPEG to keep the PDF small.
Which TIFF compressions are supported?
Uncompressed, LZW, Deflate (Adobe and old style), PackBits, CCITT Modified Huffman, Group 3 and Group 4, and JPEG (compression 7) are decoded in the page. Bit depths of 1, 2, 4, 8 and 16 in black and white, grayscale, palette, RGB and CMYK are supported. Rarer formats such as old-style JPEG are passed to the UTIF.js decoder when it can be loaded.
Is there a limit on file or page size?
There is no fixed limit; it depends on your device's memory. Pages are decoded one at a time and only a few are kept in memory, so long faxes with hundreds of pages work. Very large single pages (above roughly 240 megapixels) are refused because browsers cannot create canvases that big.
Are my documents uploaded?
No. The TIFF is read and decoded entirely in your browser, which matters for faxes and scans that often contain personal or business information. Nothing is sent to a server.
Are all the tools on FreeToolCabin tested for quality and accuracy?
Yes! Every tool on our site undergoes automated Q/A testing in real browser environments to ensure high precision, correct output, and zero errors. If you happen to spot a bug or have a suggestion, please contact us at [email protected] and our team will review it right away.