ipynb vieweripynb viewer compared with nbviewer, GitHub, Colab and JupyterLab
These tools do different jobs. JupyterLab and Colab are for working on a notebook. nbviewer and GitHub show one. ipynb viewer only shows one, and tries to do that without anything leaving your device. Checked in October 2026 against each tool's documented behaviour; products change, so confirm anything that matters to you.
| ipynb viewer | nbviewer | GitHub preview | Google Colab | JupyterLab | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runs the code | No | No | No | Yes, on Google's machines | Yes, on your kernel |
| Where the file is read | In your browser | On the nbviewer server, which fetches and renders it | On GitHub's servers | In the Colab service | On the machine running the server |
| Uploads your file | No for files; links go to the browser from GitHub, or via this site's Worker on the main copy | Public links are fetched by the server | The file is already in GitHub | Yes, to Drive or the session | Not to a third party |
| Works offline | Yes, after one visit | No | No | No | Yes, once installed |
| Private files | Open them from disk | Public links only | Needs access to the repository | Needs a Google sign-in | Open them from disk |
| Account needed | No | No | For private repositories | A Google account | No |
| Large files | Disk files are read in chunks with no set limit; links up to 50 MB | Depends on the service | GitHub may decline to render large notebooks | Depends on Drive and the session | Depends on your machine |
| Export | Markdown, cell and figure images | Download the file | Download or view raw | Several formats | Many formats through nbconvert |
When to choose which
- Use ipynb viewer when you want to read a notebook quickly, in a browser, without installing anything and without sending the file anywhere, including one you received by email.
- Use nbviewer or the GitHub preview when you want a stable web address for a public notebook that others can open without this tool.
- Use Colab or JupyterLab when you want to run or edit the notebook.
What the viewer does not do
It does not execute cells, edit notebooks, or show widgets that need a kernel. Interactive outputs are shown as what the notebook saved, and scripts wait behind a button in a sandbox. There is no PDF export; the browser's print dialog covers that.
Links
ipynb viewer opens GitHub files and gists from a link, including the GitHub forms of Colab and nbviewer addresses, so a link made for one of those tools can be pasted here. See opening a notebook from a GitHub link for what is accepted and the limits.