TL;DR
Open XYZ to LAZ for a three-column XYZ file. For CSV or PTS, use the general Point Cloud Converter. Inspect the source and preview, choose LAZ, then convert and download it locally.
No software installation or login is required, and local file contents are not uploaded to Klar3D.
1. Check the text layout
These text formats have different expectations. A file extension alone does not establish how each column should be interpreted.
| Input | Expected layout | Attributes available to the reader |
|---|---|---|
| XYZ | Exactly three whitespace-separated coordinate columns | XYZ |
| CSV | A header with named x, y, and z columns | XYZ and recognized RGB, intensity, classification fields |
| PTS | Common XYZ intensity RGB layout, optionally preceded by a point count | XYZ, intensity, RGB |
For example, a minimal XYZ input looks like this:
0.0 0.0 0.0
1.0 0.0 0.5
0.0 1.0 1.0The same three sample points in CSV need column names:
x,y,z
0.0,0.0,0.0
1.0,0.0,0.5
0.0,1.0,1.0These are tiny illustrative examples, not survey datasets. Use a representative sample of your own data to check the layout before converting a large file.
2. Open the appropriate converter
Open XYZ to LAZ Open CSV or PTS converter
Select or drop the file. Use the generic converter for CSV and PTS because the specialized XYZ entrance is limited to XYZ input. If parsing fails, check the header, number of columns, delimiters, and whether each point has numeric coordinates.
3. Check the preview and bounds
Fit the cloud and check the reported point count and bounds. Unexpected axes or an enormous extent can reveal swapped columns or inconsistent source values before conversion.
Confirm the units and coordinate system from the dataset’s documentation. The converter does not infer a CRS or reproject the source. Three numbers per row are not enough to distinguish local metres from a projected survey grid or longitude and latitude.
4. Choose LAZ and review attributes
Select LAZ from the available outputs. Plain XYZ contributes coordinates only. Recognized CSV and PTS attributes may supply colour or intensity; check the displayed fields and preservation warnings.
LAS/LAZ intensity is represented as an unsigned 16-bit integer. Floating-point values are rounded and clamped to 0-65,535, so retain the source when exact floating-point intensity matters. LAZ compression does not make an otherwise lossy format mapping preserve every original text field.
5. Convert, download, and verify
Start conversion and download the LAZ file. The full source is processed separately from the compact preview. Reopen the result in WolkeViz and compare bounds, geometry, point count, and expected attributes.
For many files with the same input format, follow batch conversion. For robotics output, read LAZ to PCD; for scanner containers, see E57 to LAZ or PCD. All workflows are linked from the converter overview.