How to Open or View XPS and OXPS Files on Windows 10/11 PC or Mac Computer

Are you curious to know how to open XPS and OXPS files on Windows 10/11 PC or Mac computer? While XPS and OXPS files never gained much traction unlike their PDF counterpart, some people continue to use them.

However, opening these files isn’t as straightforward. This article will give you an idea of how you can open these files on your Mac computer or Windows PC.

Ways to Open XPS and OXPS Files on Windows 10/11 PC

The Windows operating system has an XPS viewer that can be used for XPS and OXPS files.

The only issue here is that the applet doesn’t get installed by default. It leaves you with no choice but to install the XPS viewer first before you can start opening OXPS files.

Here are the steps for installing on your Windows PC the XPS Viewer:

1. Click on the Start button.
2. Launch the Settings menu by clicking the Settings gear icon.
3. Go to Apps and then look for App & Features.
4. On the right panel, click the link that states Optional Features.
5. Select Add a Feature on the next page for Optional Features.
6. Scroll down to look for and select XPS Viewer in the next window.
7. Click the Install button.

The XPS Viewer application will then be downloaded and installed automatically on your Windows PC once you have finished these steps above. It also means that you can now proceed to open any XPS or OXPS file on your Windows PC.

Simply follow the steps before doing so:

1. Go to the Windows Search box and type XPS.
2. Click to open the top entry XPS viewer from the available search results that show up.
3. Open the XPS Viewer program and drag the OXPS file into it to open it. You can also try clicking the File menu, choosing the Open option, and clicking the specific file from the PC.

Steps to View and Open XPS and OXPS Files on Mac Computer

If you’re using your Mac computer to open XPS and OXPS files, here are the steps you should follow:

1. Use the Mac OS Finder to look for the OXPS file you want to open. Double-click on it to open the corresponding app.
2. If you can’t open the OXPS file in a Mac OS app and the error message “There is no application set to open the file” shows up instead, you can just click the “Search App Store” in the error dialog. Mac OS will list all OXPS file-compatible apps that you can try to use.
3. You can select the option “Choose Application…” from the error box if you are familiar with the Mac OS app that can help open OXPS files. The file extension will be associated, allowing you to use it to open the OXPS file it contains.
4. You can also install a third-party app that can read and open OXPS files.

Opening XPS and OXPS files don’t have to be complex. It only takes a few steps and you will be good to go.