GDAL-RASTER-UNSCALE(1) GDAL GDAL-RASTER-UNSCALE(1)
NAME
gdal-raster-unscale - Convert scaled values of a raster dataset into
unscaled values
Added in version 3.11.
SYNOPSIS
Usage: gdal raster unscale [OPTIONS]
Convert scaled values of a raster dataset into unscaled values.
Positional arguments:
-i, --input Output raster dataset [required] [not available in pipelines]
Common Options:
-h, --help Display help message and exit
--json-usage Display usage as JSON document and exit
--config = Configuration option [may be repeated]
-q, --quiet Quiet mode (no progress bar or warning message) [not available in pipelines]
Options:
-f, --of, --format, --output-format Output format ("GDALG" allowed) [not available in pipelines]
--co, --creation-option = Creation option [may be repeated] [not available in pipelines]
--overwrite Whether overwriting existing output dataset is allowed [not available in pipelines]
Mutually exclusive with --append
--append Append as a subdataset to existing output [not available in pipelines]
Mutually exclusive with --overwrite
--ot, --datatype, --output-data-type Output data type. OUTPUT-DATA-TYPE=UInt8|Int8|UInt16|Int16|UInt32|Int32|UInt64|Int64|CInt16|CInt32|Float16|Float32|Float64|CFloat32|CFloat64
Advanced Options:
--if, --input-format Input formats [may be repeated] [not available in pipelines]
--oo, --open-option = Open options [may be repeated] [not available in pipelines]
DESCRIPTION
gdal raster unscale applies the scale/offset metadata for the bands to
convert scaled values to unscaled values.
If the input band data type is Byte, Int8, UInt16, Int16, UInt32,
Int32, Int64, UInt64, Float16 or Float32, the default output data type
will be Float32. If the input band data type is Float64, it will be
kept as the default output data type. If the input band data type is
CInt16, CFloat16 or CFloat32, the default output data type will be
Float32. If the input band data type is CFloat64, it will be kept as
the default output data type.
The unscaled value is computed from the scaled raw value with the
following formula:
{unscaled\_value} = {scaled\_value} * {scale} + {offset}
If one of the input bands has no scale/offset metadata, its values are
kept unmodified.
This command is the reverse operation of gdal raster scale.
This subcommand is also available as a potential step of gdal raster
pipeline
GDALG OUTPUT (ON-THE-FLY / STREAMED DATASET)
This program supports serializing the command line as a JSON file using
the GDALG output format. The resulting file can then be opened as a
raster dataset using the GDALG: GDAL Streamed Algorithm driver, and
apply the specified pipeline in a on-the-fly / streamed way.
STANDARD OPTIONS
--append
Append input raster as a new subdataset to an existing output
file. Only works with drivers that support adding subdatasets
such as GTiff -- GeoTIFF File Format and GPKG -- GeoPackage
raster This also creates the output dataset if it does not exist
yet.
--co, --creation-option =
Many formats have one or more optional creation options that can
be used to control particulars about the file created. For
instance, the GeoTIFF driver supports creation options to
control compression, and whether the file should be tiled.
May be repeated.
The creation options available vary by format driver, and some
simple formats have no creation options at all. A list of
options supported for a format can be listed with the --formats
command line option but the documentation for the format is the
definitive source of information on driver creation options.
See Raster drivers format specific documentation for legal
creation options for each format.
--if, --input-format
Format/driver name to be attempted to open the input file(s). It
is generally not necessary to specify it, but it can be used to
skip automatic driver detection, when it fails to select the
appropriate driver. This option can be repeated several times
to specify several candidate drivers. Note that it does not
force those drivers to open the dataset. In particular, some
drivers have requirements on file extensions.
May be repeated.
--oo, --open-option =
Dataset open option (format specific).
May be repeated.
--ot, --datatype, --output-data-type
Output data type among Byte, Int8, UInt16, Int16, UInt32, Int32,
UInt64, Int64, CInt16, CInt32, Float32, Float64, CFloat32,
CFloat64.
-f, --of, --format, --output-format
Which output raster format to use. Allowed values may be given
by gdal --formats | grep raster | grep rw | sort
--overwrite
Allow program to overwrite existing target file or dataset.
Otherwise, by default, gdal errors out if the target file or
dataset already exists.
RETURN STATUS CODE
The program returns status code 0 in case of success, and non-zero in
case of error (non-blocking errors emitted as warnings are considered
as a successful execution).
EXAMPLES
Example 1: Unscale a scaled raster to a Float32 one
$ gdal raster unscale scaled_byte.tif unscaled_float32.tif --overwrite
AUTHOR
Even Rouault
COPYRIGHT
1998-2026
August 18, 2026 GDAL-RASTER-UNSCALE(1)