EDI Viewer, EDI Parser and Formatter in One
Most people arrive here wanting one of four things, and it is the same tool for all of them. As an EDI viewer and parser it turns a wall of raw X12 into annotated segments you can actually read. As a formatter it breaks a single-line interchange onto one segment per row with the delimiters resolved. As a checker it tests an 850, 810, 856, or 997 for structural validity and tells you where the envelope breaks. And in Compare mode it works as an ANSI X12 comparison tool for two files side by side. Nothing is uploaded in any of those modes. Need a file to try it on? Download one of the free EDI sample files.
What SNIP Levels Does This EDI Validator Check?
SNIP levels come from the WEDI Strategic National Implementation Process. They were written for healthcare EDI but the seven types of testing are the standard way to describe how deep any X12 validator goes. This tool runs entirely in your browser, which sets a hard limit on what it can check.
| Level | What it tests | Checked here |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | EDI syntax integrity: envelope structure, ISA/IEA, GS/GE and ST/SE pairing, segment and delimiter parsing | Yes |
| 2 | Implementation guide syntax: required segments present for the transaction set, such as BEG on an 850 or BIG on an 810 | Yes |
| 3 | Balancing: totals reconcile, for example CTT line count matching the actual number of PO1 segments | Partial: SE, GE and IEA counts, control numbers and CTT line counts; not amount totals |
| 4 | Situational rules: if element A is present then element B is required | Partial |
| 5 | External code sets: unit of measure, currency, and country codes validated against published lists | No |
| 6 | Product and service code sets specific to a line of business | No |
| 7 | Trading partner specific rules beyond the standard | Partial: document types and our published requirements for 34 retailers; field rules for Walmart, Target, Amazon and Costco |
Levels 5 and 6 need maintained external code tables, and full level 7 needs your partner's implementation guide. No generic browser tool can do those honestly. If a free validator claims all seven levels without asking which trading partner you are sending to, treat the claim carefully.
Validate an EDI 850 in v3050, 4010, or 5010
The parser reads the version from GS08 and validates the envelope and structure the same way across versions, so a 3050, 4010, or 5010 file all load. Retail EDI is still overwhelmingly 004010, healthcare is 005010, and 003050 turns up in older automotive and government relationships. What changes between versions is which segments and elements the standard permits, so a file that is structurally valid in one version can still be rejected by a partner expecting another. If you are chasing a rejection, check GS08 first: a version mismatch between what you send and what your partner mapped is one of the most common causes of a file that looks perfect and still fails.
Compare Two EDI Files
Choose Compare two files under the paste box to load two documents side by side and see a segment-level diff. It is the fastest way to answer why one order posted and a near-identical one did not, to check what actually changed between an original and a resend, or to line a partner's sample file up against your own output during onboarding. The comparison runs in the browser like everything else here, so neither file is uploaded.
Is This Open Source?
The parser is not open source, but it does run entirely in your browser. Nothing is uploaded unless you choose to send a file to us for fixing, nothing is stored on a server, and the page works with the network disconnected once loaded. You can confirm that in your browser's network tab. That matters because EDI files carry customer names, addresses, pricing, and volumes, and pasting them into a hosted validator sends all of it to someone else's server.
If you are looking for a library to embed rather than a tool to paste into, there are open source X12 parsers for most languages, including PHP, Python, and Node. They handle parsing well and generally leave partner-specific validation to you.
For programmatic access to parsing and extraction, see the extraction API, or read the EDI transaction guides for what each segment and code means. To hand a file to someone who does not read EDI, the EDI translator writes it out in plain English.
Working With EDIFACT or TRADACOMS?
Customers in the UK and Europe usually send UN/EDIFACT (often the GS1 EANCOM subset) or, in UK retail, TRADACOMS instead of X12. Paste them here and the viewer reads them as they are, or open the EDIFACT inspector directly. It reads ORDERS, ORDRSP, DESADV, and INVOIC messages and checks the UNB to UNZ envelope, segment counts, and GS1 check digits. It leads with EDIFACT samples and UK retailer checks.