File API

Using the File API added to the DOM in HTML5, it's now possible for web content to ask the user to select local files.

Verdict

Safe to use

Category

JavaScript APIs

Browser support

Can I Use

Works in

all modern browsers

Should you use File API in 2026?

FileReader pairs very well with Drag n Drop to allow for drag 'n drop file uploads, and if neither of those features are present, the fallback of providing an <input type=file> is rather easy. Fully supported in Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Safari 6, and IE 10. Partially supported in Safari 5.1 (lacks FileReader support).

• FileReader provides useful fallback, based on Flash, jQuery, and jQuery UI. Doesn't support readAsBinaryFile().
• moxie extracted from Plupload. Actively maintained as of <time>2013-06-03</time>.

Polyfills and fallbacks

FileReader, moxie

Browser share on Can I Use Edit on GitHub