XCUR vs CUR: Linux X11 Xcursor vs Windows Static Cursor
Compare the technical architecture of X11 Xcursor (.xcur) and Microsoft Windows Cursor (.cur) mouse pointer bitmap formats.
X11 Xcursor (.xcur) and Windows Cursor (.cur) are the two primary mouse pointer formats across desktop operating systems. Xcursor features multi-size alpha-blended 32-bit ARGB rasters designed for X11/Wayland desktop themes, while CUR uses classic Windows ICO-derived DIB bitmaps with 1-bit XOR/AND transparency masks.
| FEATURE | XCUR | CUR |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Platform | Linux / UNIX / X11 / Wayland | Microsoft Windows |
| File Magic | 0x72756358 ('Xcur') | 0x0000 0x0002 (Type 2 Cursor) |
| Transparency Model | 32-bit premultiplied ARGB alpha channel | 1-bit AND mask or 32-bit alpha channel |
| Multi-Resolution Packing | TOC chunk table with nominal pixel sizes | Icon directory entries with width and height bytes |
| Hotspot Storage | 32-bit integers in image chunk header | 16-bit integers in resource directory header |
- Native 32-bit ARGB with smooth semi-transparent alpha channel blending
- Multi-resolution table of contents packing sizes from 16px to 128px in one file
- Standard cursor theme format across Linux (GNOME, KDE, XFCE) and BSD
- Directly stores millisecond frame delays for animated cursor themes
- Universal native support across all Windows versions since Windows 1.0
- Extremely simple binary structure supported by nearly every icon editor
- Includes exact integer X/Y hotspot pixel coordinates
- Supported natively as web cursors via CSS url() syntax in all browsers
Xcursor offers superior modern alpha blending for Unix desktops, while CUR remains the standard for Windows. convrtr un-premultiplies and renders both cursor formats into transparent 32-bit RGBA PNG images directly in your browser.
Converting files between XCUR and CUR frequently? The convrtr Chrome Extension lets you right-click any image on any webpage or open the Side Panel to convert assets instantly using local WebAssembly with zero server uploads.