The CF metadata conventions are designed to promote the processing and sharing of files created with the NetCDF API. The conventions define metadata that provide a definitive description of what the data in each variable represents, and the spatial and temporal properties of the data. This enables users of data from different sources to decide which quantities are comparable, and facilitates building applications with powerful extraction, regridding, and display capabilities. The CF convention includes a standard name table, which defines strings that identify physical quantities.
Initially CF was developed for gridded data from climate and forecast models (hence “CF”) of the atmosphere and ocean, but its use has subsequently extended to other geosciences, and to observations as well as numerical models. The use of CF is recommended where applicable by Unidata.
Standard names Area types Standarized regions
CF GitHub Discussions is the place for asking questions about how to use CF,
and for discussions and announcements
See also the links in the navigation bar at the top of this page.
Proposals for changing CF (GitHub issues):
vocabulary (including standard names), conventions, website and governance
List of software for working with CF
List of projects and activities that use the CF metadata conventions
Paper describing the CF data model and reference software
Overview of CF, presented at 2025 AGU: DOI PDF
More detailed presentation and paper about CF basics
CF is developed through open discussion on GitHub. If you would like to propose a change, make a suggestion, report a problem or ask a question, please see here. Changes are decided according to the CF governance arrangements. The CF community embraces a philosophy of producing excellence by maintaining an open and welcoming culture and an environment that promotes debate and inquiry in a respectful, bold and intellectually rigorous fashion.
CF Metadata