Is .opdownload the same as .crdownload?

Functionally yes — both are in-progress downloads. .crdownload is written by Chrome, Edge and Brave; .opdownload is written by Opera. Each becomes the real file when the download completes.

Why does Opera use .opdownload instead of .crdownload?

Opera is Chromium-based but brands its temporary download file with its own name. The behaviour is the same as Chrome's .crdownload.

How do I open a .opdownload or .crdownload file?

You can't open it directly — it is a partial download. Resume it from the browser's Downloads page, or download the file again from the source.

Can I resume a .crdownload in Opera (or an .opdownload in Chrome)?

No. Each browser stores download progress in its own internal database, not inside the file, so it cannot resume another browser's placeholder. Start the download over in the browser you want to finish in, then delete the old placeholder.

How do I know how much of the file downloaded?

Check the placeholder's size on disk and compare it to the expected final size. A near-full size means the connection dropped near the end; 0 KB means it never really started.

Why does every download leave a leftover placeholder?

Usually an antivirus quarantining the file at the final scan, a full disk, or an expired login mid-download. Free up space, pause the AV download scan briefly, and retry from a freshly loaded page.

Will renaming .crdownload or .opdownload to the real extension fix it?

No. The placeholder holds only the bytes received so far; renaming it just mislabels an incomplete file, which will be corrupt. Resume or re-download instead.

.crdownload vs .opdownload — What's the Difference?

Both files are downloads that never finished — the only real difference is the browser. .crdownload comes from Chrome and Edge; .opdownload comes from Opera.

Short answer: same job, different browser. .crdownload is the placeholder Chrome, Edge and Brave write while a file is downloading; .opdownload is the placeholder Opera writes. Both are renamed to the real file the moment the download completes, so a leftover .crdownload or .opdownload means the transfer was interrupted.

Side by side

.crdownload — Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Brave, Vivaldi and most Chromium browsers.
.opdownload — Opera and Opera GX (Chromium-based, but it brands the temp file with its own name).

Older Chrome builds (pre-2012) used .crdownload's ancestor .part; Firefox still uses .part today. So if you see .part instead, that is the same idea from a different engine — see what a .part / partial file is.

How much of the file is already here?

The placeholder grows as bytes arrive, so its size on disk tells you roughly how far the download got. Right-click the .crdownload/.opdownload and check Size, then compare it to the expected final size shown on the download page. If it is 0 KB the transfer never really started; if it is close to the full size the connection dropped near the end and a resume will likely finish fast.

How to finish either one

The fix is identical across Chromium browsers and Opera:

Open the Downloads page — Ctrl+J (Windows/Linux) or Cmd+Shift+J (Mac).
Find the paused or failed item and click Resume.
If there is no Resume button, the server did not allow a partial resume — click Retry or re-download from the original page.

Do not rename a .crdownload or .opdownload to the real extension. It holds only part of the file and the result will be corrupt or unopenable. Renaming cannot reconstruct the missing bytes.

If you switched browsers mid-download

A .crdownload and a .opdownload are not interchangeable — Opera cannot resume Chrome's placeholder and vice-versa, because each browser tracks progress in its own internal download database, not inside the file. If you started in Chrome and want to finish in Opera, you must start the download over in Opera. The stranded placeholder from the first browser is then safe to delete.

Is it safe to delete a leftover?

Yes. A stranded .crdownload or .opdownload is just a partial file from a download that never finished, so deleting it only discards incomplete data — the original is still on the source page. Clear them out if your Downloads folder is cluttered; the browser will make a fresh placeholder next time. The one exception: if the download is still active in the browser, deleting the placeholder will abort it, so finish or cancel it first.

Why it is stuck and keeps leaving placeholders

If every download leaves a .crdownload/.opdownload behind, the common causes are: an antivirus or security suite that quarantines the file during the final virus scan; a full disk (the browser cannot rename a file it cannot finish writing); or a download that needs a login/cookie that expired mid-transfer. Clear space, pause your AV's download-scan briefly, and retry from a fresh page load.

.crdownload vs .opdownload: What's the Difference?