Perplexity AI File Upload and Reading: formats, limits, and workflow integration.

Perplexity AI combines conversational reasoning with document understanding, allowing users to upload files, query their contents, and integrate cloud repositories directly into chats. The platform supports a broad range of document, spreadsheet, image, audio, and video formats, with file-size and quantity limits that scale by account type. In 2025, Perplexity’s documentation clarified how uploads, connectors, and repository functions operate across the consumer app, enterprise accounts, and developer API, creating a structured ecosystem for knowledge ingestion and reading.

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How file uploading works in the app and web interface.

Within the main Perplexity interface, users can attach files to any query. Once uploaded, the assistant parses and reads the content to generate summaries, explanations, or direct answers. Files can be combined with live search through Web focus, or analyzed in isolation through Writing focus, which ensures that responses rely exclusively on the uploaded materials.

The current upload policy allows up to 10 files per message and enforces a maximum file size of 40 MB. All files are processed on demand, meaning the assistant extracts and indexes them temporarily for the session rather than storing them permanently.

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Supported file types and reading capabilities.

Perplexity’s upload and reading system accommodates a wide range of formats across documents, images, and media.

• Documents: PDF, DOC, DOCX, TXT, RTF, CSV, XLSX, PPTX.

• Google Workspace formats: Docs, Sheets, and Slides through connected accounts.

• Images: JPEG, PNG, HEIF, and image-based PDFs.

• Audio: MP3, WAV, AIFF, OGG, FLAC.

• Video: MP4, MOV, AVI, and WebM.

Document and spreadsheet files are fully parsed for text and table content. Audio files are transcribed and can be queried through natural language, while video uploads rely on transcript or caption text rather than visual analysis.

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File and repository limits by plan and environment.

Perplexity enforces different file and repository rules for consumer and enterprise environments.

Environment	Per-file limit	Upload volume	Repository capacity	Notes
Consumer app/web	40 MB	10 files per upload	N/A	Default plan for all users; temporary session storage
Enterprise Pro	50 MB	500 files per day	5,000 files per repository	Includes internal knowledge and team workspaces
Enterprise Max	50 MB	500 files per day	10,000 files per repository	For large-scale deployments and data corpora
API (Sonar models)	50 MB	Per request limit only	N/A	Accepts PDF, DOC, DOCX, TXT, RTF; via URL or base64

The consumer-level plan focuses on ad hoc uploads for individual use, while enterprise plans introduce persistent repositories with defined storage ceilings.

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Internal Knowledge and connectors for enterprise.

Enterprise users can access Internal Knowledge and Spaces, which act as private repositories for recurring data. These repositories index documents and spreadsheets for direct question-answering. Image formats like PNG or JPEG can be attached to prompts but are not indexed in repository searches.

Perplexity also provides connectors to cloud services such as Google Drive, OneDrive, SharePoint, Box, and Dropbox. These integrations allow users to reference files directly from corporate storage without manual uploads. For Google Drive, administrators must enable API access through Workspace to allow indexing and retrieval.

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Table — Supported formats across Perplexity environments.

Category	Supported formats	Notes
Documents	PDF, DOC/DOCX, TXT, RTF, CSV, XLSX, PPTX	Fully parsed for structure and text
Google Workspace	Docs, Sheets, Slides	Requires Drive connector
Images	JPEG, PNG, HEIF, image PDFs	Viewable but not indexed in repositories
Audio	MP3, WAV, AIFF, OGG, FLAC	Transcribed for content search
Video	MP4, MOV, AVI, WebM	Transcript-based Q&A; no visual indexing yet

This table shows how Perplexity handles a variety of file types across personal, enterprise, and API contexts.

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Developer access through the Sonar API.

Developers can integrate Perplexity’s file-reading capability into their own applications using the Sonar API. Files up to 50 MB can be submitted either as public URLs or base64-encoded attachments. The API supports the same file types as the main app and can perform question-answering, summarization, or text extraction over document contents.

The Sonar roadmap includes deeper video analysis for future releases, but at present, only transcript-level parsing is available for audiovisual content. This makes the API well-suited for research, structured report generation, and retrieval-based applications using textual data.

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How Perplexity interprets uploaded files.

When a user uploads a file, Perplexity extracts textual information, identifies structure (tables, headings, or metadata), and creates a temporary semantic index. For files processed in Web focus, the assistant combines internal text with external citations. For Writing focus, it limits reasoning strictly to the file contents.

Audio uploads are first converted into transcripts that are then searchable, and videos are interpreted via those same transcripts or subtitle layers. The approach ensures consistent reasoning across media while maintaining predictable context size within each query.

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Practical recommendations for effective use.

• Split large PDFs into smaller sections when they exceed 40–50 MB to maintain processing speed.

• Use Writing focus when you want answers based solely on uploaded documents without web data.

• Connect Drive or other cloud accounts for persistent corporate repositories that remove the need for repeated uploads.

• Manage repository growth by organizing files into thematic Spaces under the published 5,000–10,000 file limits.

• For developers, prefer file URLs over base64 to reduce payload size and improve request efficiency.

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Operational perspective for teams and organizations.

For individuals, Perplexity’s 40 MB upload capacity and 10-file limit cover everyday research or study use. For teams, the enterprise tiers introduce stable repositories and daily upload allowances that can sustain continuous document ingestion. At the API level, Sonar provides programmatic file reading and integration for external systems.

This layered model allows Perplexity to balance accessibility with scalability. The platform accommodates simple one-off uploads for personal users, managed Spaces for enterprise collaboration, and a developer API for technical integrations—all unified under consistent reading behavior and document interpretation.

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