What a .cue File Does and Why You Might Have One

A .cue file is a text document that tells your computer how to play or burn a disc image

A .cue file is a small text file that acts as a map or instruction sheet for a disc image — usually a CD or DVD stored on your computer. It does not contain the actual music, video, or data. Instead, it tells your media player or burning software where the tracks begin and end, how long each one is, and what format the audio or data is in. Think of it as a table of contents that your computer reads before playing or writing the disc.

You will almost always find a .cue file paired with a .bin file (the binary image file that holds the actual content) or sometimes with .iso, .wav, or .flac files. The .cue file is useless on its own — your computer needs both files together to work. If you have downloaded a disc image from the internet or received one from someone else, the .cue file was likely included in the same folder.

Key Takeaways

A .cue file is a text instruction sheet that pairs with a disc image file (.bin, .iso, or audio files) to tell software how to read or burn the disc.
You can open and read a .cue file in any text editor to see what tracks it contains and how they are arranged.
If you are backing up or organizing disc images, keep the .cue file in the same folder as its matching image file — they work as a pair.
Most modern media players and disc-burning programs recognize .cue files automatically, so you usually just open the .cue file and the software handles the rest.

How a .cue file works with disc images

When you store a CD or DVD as a file on your computer, the software creates two or more separate files. The .bin or .iso file holds all the raw data — every byte of music, video, or program code. The .cue file is a separate, much smaller text document that describes the structure: which track starts at which point in the image, how many tracks there are, and whether each track is audio, video, or data.

Without the .cue file, your computer sees only a blob of data. With it, your media player knows to split that blob into individual tracks and play them in the right order. When you burn a disc image back to a physical disc, the burning software reads the .cue file to know exactly where to write each track and what format to use.

Opening and reading a .cue file

You can open a .cue file in any text editor — Notepad on Windows, TextEdit on Mac, or any plain-text editor on Linux. The file contains human-readable commands that look like this:

FILE "image.bin" BINARY TRACK 01 AUDIO INDEX 01 00:00:00 TRACK 02 AUDIO INDEX 01 05:30:12

This tells the software that the image file is called "image.bin", that there are two audio tracks, and that track 2 starts at 5 minutes, 30 seconds, and 12 frames into the image. You do not need to edit this file unless you are manually repairing a corrupted disc image, which is rare. For most purposes, you just need to know that the .cue file exists and stays with its matching image file.

Organizing .cue files when backing up or storing disc images

If you are backing up old CDs or DVDs to your computer, or if you have downloaded disc images, keep the .cue file and its matching image file (.bin, .iso, or audio file) in the same folder. Name the folder clearly — for example, "Disc Images" or "CD Backups" — so you know what is inside.

When you move, copy, or back up these files to an external drive or cloud storage, move both files together. If you separate them, the .cue file will not work because it contains a reference to the image filename. If you rename the image file, you may need to open the .cue file in a text editor and update the filename reference at the top of the file.

A straightforward folder structure might look like this:

Disc Images / Album Name / album.cue and album.bin
Disc Images / Software / program.cue and program.iso
Disc Images / Video / movie.cue and movie.bin

Playing disc images with a .cue file

To play a disc image, open the .cue file (not the .bin or .iso file) in your media player or disc-emulation software. Common programs that recognize .cue files include VLC Media Player, Daemon Tools, and WinCDEmu on Windows; Keka or Disk Utility on Mac; and various Linux tools depending on your distribution.

When you open the .cue file, the software automatically finds and reads the matching image file. You can then play the tracks as if the disc were in a physical drive. If your media player does not recognize .cue files, you can usually right-click the file, select "Open With", and choose a program that supports disc images.

Burning a disc image from a .cue file

If you want to write a disc image back to a physical CD or DVD, use disc-burning software like ImgBurn (Windows), Burn (Mac), or Brasero (Linux). Open the .cue file in the burning software, insert a blank disc, and start the burn. The software reads the .cue file to understand the track layout and writes the image to the disc in the correct format.

Make sure the blank disc is large enough for the image. A .cue file paired with a 700 MB .bin file, for example, requires a 700 MB CD-R. The burning software will usually warn you if the image is too large for the disc you have inserted.

Common reasons you might have .cue files

You have .cue files if you have downloaded or created disc images from CDs, DVDs, or older game consoles. They are common in retro gaming communities, where people preserve old console games as disc images. You might also have them if you backed up your own music CDs or software discs to your computer, or if someone sent you a disc image file.

If you find .cue files on your computer and do not remember creating them, check the folder they are in. The folder name or the image filename usually tells you what the disc contained. If you no longer need the disc image, you can delete both the .cue file and its matching image file together.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I delete a .cue file if I still have the .bin or .iso file?

You can, but you will not be able to play or burn the disc image without it. The .cue file is small (usually just a few kilobytes), so there is no storage benefit to deleting it. Keep both files together.

What if my .cue file and image file have different names?

Open the .cue file in a text editor and look at the first line. It will say something like FILE "image.bin" BINARY. If the filename there does not match the actual image file in your folder, update it to the correct name and save the file. This usually only happens if you renamed the image file after downloading.

Do I need special software to open a .cue file?

No. You can open it in any text editor to read it. To actually use it (play or burn the disc image), you need media player or disc-burning software that recognizes .cue files, such as VLC, Daemon Tools, or ImgBurn.

Why do some disc images have .cue files and others do not?

Disc images created from audio CDs or older game consoles usually include .cue files because those discs have multiple tracks with specific start and end points. Images created from data DVDs or modern software often use .iso format instead, which does not need a separate .cue file.

Can I convert a .cue file to something else?

You can convert the disc image itself (the .bin or .iso file) to a different format using software like AnyToISO or Daemon Tools, but the .cue file itself is just instructions. The conversion software will create a new .cue file if the output format needs one.

This guide is for general information only and is not medical, financial, legal, or other professional advice. For decisions specific to your situation, consult a qualified professional. See our Editorial Policy.