Free MD5 Checksum or Hashing Software

The free MD5 software listed on this page will display a 128-bit hash of a file using the MD5 algorithm. It is primarily used to verify the integrity of files. For example, some download sites list the MD5 checksum of a file so that after you download the file, you can run one of the tools listed below on the file and find the checksum of the file you received. If the checksum does not match that published on the website, you can be sure that your download had been corrupted somewhere in transit.

Note that MD5 is an insecure hash function - you should not use it as a security measure. Use it only as a rough gauge to check things like unintentional file corruption either from downloading, or a failing disk media or something like that. The reason it should not be used as a security measure is that it is possible for two different files to have the same MD5 checksum. But since it is unlikely that a file that is accidentally corrupted share the same MD5 checksum as the original, it is a useful tool for a casual check of file integrity.

For the curious, MD5 is short for Message-Digest Algorithm 5.

Incidentally, if you are prepared to use a command line program, you probably do not have to download or install anything to generate an MD5 hash, even on Windows systems. Unix-type systems like Linux typically already have md5 utilities installed. If you use Windows, read How to Get the Hash (MD5, SHA1, SHA256, SHA512) of a File on Windows Without Installing Anything to find out how to use the built-in program certutil to do the job.

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