How to Open a DICOM File on Android

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Last Updated: September 1, 2021 Tested

You can easily open and view DICOM image files on an Android phone or tablet–with or without an app. DICOM files usually contain medical images/scans and carry the ".dcm" file extension at the end of the file name. We’ll give you two main methods for viewing DICOM images on Android: either opening the files online in your browser or downloading a free third-party DICOM viewer app.

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Using a Web Browser

1
Open Chrome on your Android. Find and tap the
icon on your Apps menu to open your internet browser.
- You can also use a different browser like Firefox or Opera. The web-based viewer works in most browsers.
- If you received the DICOM file via email, make sure you've saved the file to your Android.
2
Go to https://viewmyscans.com in your browser. Type or paste this URL into your browser's address bar, and press ↵ Enter or ⏎ Return on your keyboard.

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3
Tap the click to choose a file link. This is a blue link inside the red rectangle on the page. It will open a pop-up menu.
4
Tap Documents on the pop-up menu. This will open your Android's file navigator, and prompt you to select your file.
5
Select your DICOM image file. This will instantly upload and process the selected DICOM file on the viewer website. The image title will show up as a blue link below the red area.
6
Tap the blue image name. The online viewer automatically recognizes all the images in the uploaded DICOM file, and the available image (or images) shows up as a blue link below the red area.
- Tapping the image name will open the picture in a new tab.
- For example, if this file was an MRI scan, you could see an image name such as "Magnetic Resonance with 2 Slices created on 5 March 2011 1:37 AM."

Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Using an App

1
Download and install the DroidRender app from the Play Store. Search "DroidRender" and tap the green INSTALL button to start your download.
- If you'd like to see more about downloading an app, make sure to check out this article for further instructions.
- If you received the DICOM file via email, make sure you've saved the file to your Android.
- You can directly open the app page on the Play Store at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.luolai.droidrender.
2
Open the DroidRender app on your Android. The DroidRender icon looks like an anatomical illustration of the human face inside a gray square. You can find it on your Apps menu.
3
Tap OK. When you're prompted, tap OK in the pop-up to proceed.
4
Tap Agree in the pop-up. This will agree to the app's terms, and open the main menu.
5
Tap Internal storage. This is the first option at the top. It will open your files, and allow you to select the DICOM file you want to view.
6
Find and tap the DICOM file you want to open. This will fill the empty
checkbox next to the selected files.
- You can select multiple files to open at once.
- DICOM files commonly use the ".dcm" extension at the end of the file name.
7
Tap the white checkmark on the top-left. This will confirm your selection, and open all the selected image files in the import preview.
8
Tap the white checkmark on the top-left again. This will import all the images from the selected DICOM files, and allow you to view them in full-screen.
- If you're prompted, tap OK to close the "User guide" pop-up.