Free and open source - Windows 10/11 - 64-bit, ARM64 and 32-bit

X JXL Metadata: JPEG XL Details in File Explorer

Show the date taken, camera, tags, rating and copyright of your .jxl photos in Windows - and edit them right in the Details pane.

EXIF XMP IPTC Details pane Edit tags and rating Windows Search .jxl .heic .avif

X JXL Metadata

Property handler

Date taken, camera, lens and exposure from EXIF

Title, tags, authors, copyright and rating from XMP and IPTC

Edit tags, title and star rating in the Details pane - saved the way Lightroom saves them

Sort and search photos by date taken, camera or tag

Image data is never touched - only the fields you change

No Visual C++ runtime, no restart, nothing running in the background

Download X JXL Metadata Free - Windows 10/11 - v1.0 build 4 - 0.7 MB

X HEIC Metadata .heic .heif - v1.0 build 4 - 0.7 MB X AVIF Metadata .avif - v1.0 build 4 - 0.7 MB

Want thumbnails too? X Image Codecs installs all of these plus the JPEG XL and HEIC codecs, with a checkbox for each.

Why the Details pane was empty

Windows reads photo details through a property handler, a separate part from the decoder that draws thumbnails.

JPEG XL decoders only draw pixels, so EXIF and IPTC stayed invisible. X JXL Metadata is the missing handler.

Works with any decoder

Use it with X JXL WinThumb, Microsoft's JPEG XL Image Extension or on its own. The X JXL WinThumb installer offers it as a ticked add-on.

Safe edits

Windows saves through a temporary copy, so an interrupted save cannot damage the photo. Lossless JPEG conversions stay read-only to keep the way back to the original JPEG.

Three formats, one handler

Which metadata add-on do you need?

Pick the one for the photo format you use. Each installs on its own and has its own entry in Add or Remove Programs.

Add-on	Files	Details pane	Thumbnails come from	Download
X JXL Metadata	`.jxl`	View and edit	Any JPEG XL decoder - X JXL WinThumb or Microsoft's JPEG XL extension	Download 1.0 build 4
X HEIC Metadata	`.heic .heif .hif`	View	X HEIC Codec or Microsoft's HEIF extensions	Download 1.0 build 4
X AVIF Metadata	`.avif`	View	Any AVIF decoder, such as Microsoft's AV1 extension	Download 1.0 build 4

X AVIF Metadata and X HEIC Metadata leave an existing handler in place. If Windows already shows details for those files, for example through a Microsoft Store extension, nothing changes.

EXIF, XMP and IPTC in Windows

What shows up in File Explorer

Every field appears in the Details pane, in Properties > Details, as a sortable column and in Windows Search.

Windows field	Read from	Editable (.jxl)
Date taken	EXIF DateTimeOriginal, with the time zone when recorded	No
Camera maker, model, lens	EXIF Make, Model, LensModel	No
F-stop, exposure, ISO, bias, focal length	EXIF exposure tags	No
Title	XMP dc:title, then EXIF	Yes
Subject	XMP photoshop:Headline	Yes
Tags	XMP dc:subject (IPTC Keywords)	Yes
Comments	XMP dc:description (IPTC Caption)	Yes
Authors	XMP dc:creator (IPTC By-line)	Yes
Copyright	XMP dc:rights, then EXIF Copyright	Yes
Rating	XMP xmp:Rating, then EXIF Rating	Yes
Dimensions, orientation	Image header, EXIF Orientation	No

Compressed metadata boxes, which libjxl writes when it converts JPEGs, are read too. Lightroom, Bridge, ExifTool and digiKam all write to the same XMP fields, so they see edits made in Explorer.

How to see JPEG XL EXIF on Windows

Photo details in three steps

Run setup

Run X-JXL-Metadata_Setup.exe and confirm the admin prompt. Setup picks the 64-bit, ARM64 or 32-bit build for your PC.

Open a new Explorer window

Select a .jxl photo and press Alt+Shift+P to show the Details pane. If it stays empty, sign out and back in once.

Edit if you like

Click a field such as Tags or Title, type, and press Enter. Click the stars to rate the photo.

Editing JPEG XL tags in Explorer

How edits are saved

Edits go into the photo's XMP block, where Adobe and most photo managers keep them.

Only the fields you change are rewritten. The image data, the EXIF block and other XMP, such as Lightroom develop settings, are copied byte for byte.

A file that starts as a bare JPEG XL codestream gets the standard JPEG XL container around it, which every viewer reads. Saves go through a temporary copy that replaces the photo only once it is complete.

Lossless JPEG conversions stay read-only. A .jxl made from a .jpg with cjxl keeps the data to rebuild the original JPEG bit for bit, and changing its metadata would break that. HEIC and AVIF details are read-only for now.

Troubleshooting

Details pane still empty?

Open a new File Explorer window, then sign out and back in. Explorer keeps the list of property handlers it loaded at startup.

Searching by tag or camera finds nothing? Files indexed before the install keep their old entries. Open Indexing Options, choose Advanced and then Rebuild.

After a Windows update or a cleanup tool, use Start > X Codec Pack > X JXL Metadata > Repair X JXL Metadata. Contacting support? Attach a setup log:

X-JXL-Metadata_Setup.exe /log=jxl-metadata-setup.log

For IT and deployment

Silent install and uninstall

All three run unattended with /S and never restart the PC. Exit code 0 means installed, 2 means stopped by an error.

X-JXL-Metadata_Setup.exe /S /log=C:\Logs\jxl-metadata.log
X-HEIC-Metadata_Setup.exe /S
X-AVIF-Metadata_Setup.exe /S
"C:\Program Files\X Codec Pack\JXL Metadata\Uninstall.exe" /S

Deploying codecs and metadata together? X Image Codecs takes /codecs=jxl_winthumb,jxl_metadata,heic_metadata.

Verify your download

SHA-256 checksums

The installers are not code-signed, so SmartScreen may call them unrecognised. These hashes prove your file is byte-for-byte the one we built.

X-JXL-Metadata_Setup.exe E10C 647B 2C71 B175 FACD 9050 D670 A0AC 5EF8 F033 685A 47A4 2BDC 262D 782C FC1D

X-HEIC-Metadata_Setup.exe 9B27 B839 9A21 C299 309D F405 DB76 B127 52E6 79CF A945 4280 C3EB A927 6F24 958F

X-AVIF-Metadata_Setup.exe B277 90DA BC34 BBC2 6FB1 605E 8A40 35D5 CC48 B560 6122 7565 8061 DF41 E76A AB27

Check one in PowerShell: Get-FileHash .\X-JXL-Metadata_Setup.exe

FAQ

JPEG XL metadata on Windows - FAQ

Why does Windows show no EXIF data for .jxl files?

Windows reads photo details through a property handler, and none ships for JPEG XL. Thumbnail codecs such as X JXL WinThumb only decode pixels. X JXL Metadata adds the missing property handler.

Can I edit JPEG XL tags and ratings in File Explorer?

Yes. Title, subject, tags, comments, authors, copyright and rating can be edited in the Details pane or in Properties. Edits are written to the photo's XMP, so Lightroom and ExifTool see them too.

Does editing change the image quality?

No. The image data is copied unchanged and only the XMP block is rewritten. Lossless JPEG conversions are kept read-only so they can still be turned back into the exact original JPEG.

Do I need X JXL WinThumb for this?

No. X JXL Metadata works with any JPEG XL decoder, or alone. You need a decoder for thumbnails and X JXL Metadata for the details.

Does it work for iPhone HEIC photos and AVIF?

Yes, with X HEIC Metadata and X AVIF Metadata, built from the same code. They show the same fields read-only and leave any handler Windows already has in place.

Can I search my photos by tag or camera?

Yes, through Windows Search once the files are indexed. Photos indexed before the install need a rebuild in Indexing Options > Advanced.

Is X JXL Metadata free and safe?

It is free and MIT licensed, with no ads, tracking or background process. It has no dependencies beyond Windows itself and checks every file it reads, so a damaged photo shows no details instead of crashing Explorer.

How do I uninstall it?

Open Add or Remove Programs, select X JXL Metadata and choose Uninstall. Any handler that was registered before is put back.