All about R Files

The R file type is primarily associated with RStudio.

R	File extension: R
	File type:	text file

What is an R file

R files mostly belong to RStudio. Your R file is a source code file for the R programming language. It contains plain text instructions that let you perform tasks such as statistical analysis, data visualization, and the creation of data models.
Although the primary purpose is to hold R code, the extension has also been used for other formats. For example:

It can store compiled code for OpenEdge (Progress 4GL),

occasionally files with a PDF format,

and

even compressed archives associated with WinRAR.

This means that if you open an R file with a text editor or use an integrated development environment like RStudio, you should see readable R commands. If the content does not look like plain text, check the file header since the same extension may be used for different file types.
FilExt.com note: For more insight into the usage of R files, visit the R Project webpage.

How to open R files

You need a suitable software like RStudio to open an R file. Without proper software you will receive a Windows message "How do you want to open this file?" or "Windows cannot open this file" or a similar Mac/iPhone/Android alert. If you cannot open your R file correctly, try to right-click or long-press the file. Then click "Open with" and choose an application. You can also display a R file directly in the browser:. Just drag the file onto this browser window and drop it.

Online R Text Viewer

Choose your .r file to view

or drag and drop it here

Online File Viewer

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How to extract texts from R files or capture a screenshot to PDF, JPG, DOCX, TXT, ...

You can extract texts from R file or capture a preview screenshot using our online R file viewer:

Just click the "Choose your .r file to view" button on this page.
After your file is opened in browser,
click "Save as..." in the menu.
Then choose the file format (e.g. JPG, PDF, DOCX, TXT, ...) you want.
Download the converted file.

Programs that open and convert R files:

RStudio
See the previous paragraphs to learn more about the main application. R files are often referred to as RStudio developers because this type of file is primarily created or used by this software.
Macintosh Resource Similar to RC
Paradox File
Pegasus Mail (Resource File) by David Harris
Progress (Database Compiled Program File) by Progress Software Corporation
R script (R script) by RStudio
The .R extension is used in the widely-used and cross-platform R software (data analysis, statistics, and data visualisation) to denote a script file containing R functions that can be executed in R itself, or in one of the available IDEs (e.g. RStudio, TinnR, etc.). R script files are different from .RData files and .RMD (or .rmd) files that also contain R-related material. This file format is classified as Data.
Ratfor FORTRAN Preprocessor File
Typically lower case on *nix systems. This use is deemed obsolete now. Related links: FORTRAN Info Page
REBOL (Script or Data File) by REBOL Technologies
REBOL stands for Relative Expression Based Object Language. REBOL is pronounced "reb-ol" as in rebel yell. REBOL is a language for representing data and metadata. It provides a consistent architecture for computation, storage, and exchange of information. Both scripts and data files have the save file extension. The identifying characters used for this association are - Hex:, ASCII: REBOL []. This file format is classified as Text.
Xcode (Core Rez Program) by Apple Inc.
Xcode is a tool to help to create Mac OS X applications by assisting in the migration of code from other languages. This file format is classified as Source Code.

R format details:

The file format determines how the data is stored in the file. The initial characters of a file are called signature, sometimes also referred to as "magic bytes". The signature can be used to infer the file format. However, different programs can use the same file extension. Furthermore, a file extension can be renamed incorrectly and double-clicking on it will then display an error when it is opened. So you need a detailed analysis of a file to find out the format and the associated program. Our analysis of the R files produces the following result:

You will often come across the R file type. This covers a large number of different file formats. However, the following two file formats are common:

7% of all R files use the same file format, which have the signature library(. The contents of these files can even be read by a human. Most of these files are 290 bytes to 12 KB in size. This file type is new and state-of-the-art. The keywords library(dplyr) and ggplot2 are typical for these files.
5% of all R files use the same file format, which have the signature ###########. If you open these files in a text editor, you can view and read the content yourself. The files are on average 5 KB in size and range from 1 KB to 10 KB.

The remaining 88% of all R files are different files with different signatures, the following 9 formats exist: PDF, RAR, RTF, list and set. Tagged as data, unit, assignment, analysis, cundall or class. If you want to find out what your R file contains, drag and drop it onto this page.

Technical Data for R File Extension

File classification:

Developer

Related files:

rmd, rproj, rdata, rnw, rhistory, r00, clipped, rar, zip, csv, rout, html, rd, exe, rnw, rpf, t, script, p, docx, r01

Mime type:

text/x-rsrc, text/plain, text/x-rebol

The following listing is compiled from the database produced by the 'Associate This!' program, selected data from the main FILExt database and file extension information submitted by users.

ProgramID: CodeWarrior_r
EXEFile: E:\CodeWarrior\bin\IDE.EXE %1

ProgramID: PDVDmpgfile
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\CyberLink\PowerDVD\PowerDVD.exe %L

an r text file is a special file format and should only be edited and saved with the appropriate software.

How to solve problems with R files

Associate the R file extension with the correct application.
Update your software that should actually open text files. Because only the current version supports the latest R file format. Search, therefore, e.g. on the manufacturer website after an available RStudio update.
To make sure that your R file is not corrupted or virus-infected, get the file again and scan it with Google's virustotal.com.
Click here to open your .R file online - secure, fast, and no downloads needed.