Free tool
KML to Shapefile Converter
Drop in one KML or KMZ from Google Earth or any mapping app, or a whole batch. Get back a zipped shapefile for each with the boundaries, lines, points, and attributes intact, ready to upload to your farm software or open in GIS.
Your files are converted in this browser tab. Nothing is uploaded.
How it works
One KML in, one zip out
- Boundaries (polygons) keep their holes and gain area columns in acres and hectares.
- Lines such as tile runs and waterways keep every vertex.
- Points keep their names and data, one row each.
Output is a standard ESRI shapefile in WGS 84 with UTF-8 attributes.
Questions
Why does the zip hold several files?
A shapefile is really a set of files that travel together: .shp holds the shapes, .shx indexes them, .dbf holds the attribute table, .prj names the coordinate system, and .cpg says the text is UTF-8. Farm software expects all of them in one zip, which is why the download is a zip rather than a single .shp.
My KML has boundaries and points. Why did I get two shapefiles?
Each shapefile can only hold one kind of shape: polygons, lines, or points. When a KML mixes them, each kind becomes its own shapefile, named with _polygons, _lines, or _points. Untick the kinds you don't need before downloading, or download them one at a time if your software wants one shapefile per zip.
Can I convert several KML files at once?
Yes. Select or drop as many KML and KMZ files as you like. They share the same settings, and the download holds one shapefile zip per KML, each named after its file, ready to upload one field at a time.
What happens to names, descriptions, and other data?
The placemark name becomes the NAME column and the description becomes DESCR, with any HTML formatting stripped to plain text. Extended data fields become their own columns. Column names are shortened to 10 characters and cleaned of spaces and symbols because the .dbf format requires it; the page shows exactly how each one was renamed. Polygons also get AREA_AC and AREA_HA columns with the area in acres and hectares.
Are holes in a boundary kept?
Yes. A farmstead, pond, or waterway cut out of a field stays cut out, and the area columns subtract it. A placemark with several separate pieces is written as one multi-part record, so it stays a single field on import.
Which coordinate system does the shapefile use?
WGS 84 latitude and longitude (EPSG:4326), the same as the KML. The .prj file says so, and every GIS and farm platform reads it. Reproject in QGIS or ArcGIS afterwards if you need a state plane or UTM zone.
What about altitude?
Altitudes in the KML are dropped and the shapefile is 2D. Boundary imports in farm software expect plain 2D shapes, and many reject the 3D shapefile variants.
Is my data stored anywhere?
No. The file is read and converted by JavaScript running in your browser tab. Nothing is sent to AcreWatch or anyone else, and closing the tab discards it.