How to open .URI files on Linux
To open .URI files on Linux, open the .URI file with a text editor from your file manager (Open With → a text editor) to inspect its contents.
Step-by-step instructions
- Open the .URI file with a text editor from your file manager (Open With → a text editor) to inspect its contents.
- If your desktop environment recognizes it via shared-mime-info, you can also set the default handler for text/uri-list in your file association settings.
Common issues
It opens as unreadable content or in the wrong app
A .URI file should be plain text; if it opens in an unexpected app or looks garbled, the file may not actually be a text/uri-list file or it may use an unexpected encoding.
- Force-open it with a plain text editor to confirm whether it contains one URI per line (and optional # comments).
- If it is not plain text or does not look like a URI list, ask the sender what created it and what format it is supposed to be.
Clicking a link fails (nothing happens or the app says the URI is invalid)
URIs must be properly formed (for example, https://..., file://...) and some apps only accept specific schemes.
- Open the .URI file in a text editor and check for typos, extra spaces, or wrapped lines; each URI should be on a single line.
- Try opening the same URI by pasting it into a web browser to verify it is valid and reachable.
Linux desktop does not recognize .URI as a URI list
File associations on Linux desktops often depend on the shared-mime-info database and local MIME/application defaults.
- Confirm the file is a valid text/uri-list (one URI per line, optional # comments).
- Use your desktop environment’s file association settings to associate .uri files with a text editor or a preferred handler for text/uri-list.
Still can’t open your .URI file?
Recover a deleted or lost .URI file
If the file was deleted by mistake or the drive was formatted, data recovery software may be able to get it back. Stop writing to that drive right away, because new data can overwrite what you want to recover.
Windows software that recovers deleted or lost files from PCs and external drives such as HDDs, SSDs, USB drives and memory cards, after deletion, formatting or a crash.
Wondershare RecoveritWindows and Mac software that recovers deleted or lost files from computers and external drives such as HDDs, SSDs, USB drives and SD cards.
We may earn a commission when you use affiliate links. This supports our free file extension guides.
Security note
.URI files are plain text but can contain URIs that trigger sensitive actions (for example opening local file:// paths or launching registered URI schemes); inspect the file in a text editor before opening any links.