About ExploreMyData

ExploreMyData is a free, browser-based data tool that runs entirely on your device. Open CSV, Parquet, JSON, Excel, PDF, XML, TXT, or DuckDB files and start exploring with no upload, no server, no account. The whole thing runs in WebAssembly, including the analytical engine.

This page covers what the tool is, why it exists, and who's behind it.

What it is

You can drag a file onto exploremydata.com/app and within a couple of seconds see your data as a real table. From there you can filter, sort, group, pivot, run SQL, fix types, build charts, and export. Everything runs locally in your browser using DuckDB compiled to WebAssembly. The same analytical engine that powers serious data pipelines is doing the work, just inside a browser tab.

What makes that interesting:

  • Your data never leaves your device. Files are read locally; SQL queries execute locally; exports download locally. There's no server in the middle to upload to, and no API to send data to.
  • It works on files most online tools can't touch. Most "convert {format} to CSV" sites cap free uploads at 10 to 100 MB. ExploreMyData reads multi-gigabyte Parquet files in your browser tab and isn't gated by file size.
  • No install, no account. Visit the URL, drop a file, work with it.
  • Free, ad-supported. No subscription, no trial, no premium tier. Display ads cover hosting; that's it.

Why I built it

Every time I needed to take a quick look at a Parquet file or convert a CSV between formats, I'd hit the same wall: upload it to a sketchy online tool, install Python, or fire up Jupyter. None of that works when the data is sensitive, and all of it is overkill when you just want to glance at a few thousand rows.

DuckDB-WASM changed the math. Once the analytical engine could run inside a browser tab, the workflow I wanted (open file, look at it, maybe run a SQL query, maybe export it as something else) stopped needing a server.

ExploreMyData is the result. It started as a private tool I used at my day job and grew into a site I felt was worth sharing.

How it works

Under the hood, ExploreMyData is built on:

  • DuckDB-WASM for the analytical engine. SQL queries, joins, aggregations, type coercion, and file reading all run through DuckDB compiled to WebAssembly.
  • A React frontend for the interactive table, charts, and operations panel.
  • Cloudflare Pages for hosting. The site is a multi-page static build; every page is pre-rendered HTML with no server-side rendering needed.
  • Cloudflare Web Analytics (cookie-free) for aggregate page views. No personal tracking, no third-party ad networks beyond Google AdSense.

There's no backend. There's no database. There's no user account. The whole tool is HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and a WebAssembly binary loaded into your browser.

About the founder

I'm Arif Aslam, a senior software/data engineer based in Bangalore, India. By day I work at Mammoth Analytics building a data analytics platform. I built ExploreMyData on the side because I kept hitting the same friction: opening a small CSV or Parquet file shouldn't require uploading it to a third party, installing pandas, or firing up a notebook. DuckDB-WASM let me put that whole workflow in a single browser tab.

You can find me on LinkedIn, or read more about my background and posts on the author page.

Get in touch

The fastest way to reach me is email at support@exploremydata.com. I read every message and aim to respond within 1 to 2 business days. For longer conversations, the Contact page has more details.