Does the Nikon count include the electronic shutter?

Yes. ExifTool describes Nikon’s ShutterCount as including both mechanical and electronic shutter activations on bodies that have both. Many recent bodies also store a separate mechanical count, and the reader shows it when the file has it.

Why is the mechanical count 0 on my Z 8 or Z 9?

The Z 8 and Z 9 have no mechanical shutter, so the mechanical count stays at 0. The shutter count is every frame the camera has taken.

NEF or JPEG: which should I use?

Either, as long as it is the original file from the card. We verified Nikon JPEG and NEF files (ExifTool labels some newer NEFs as NRW; those are verified too).

Do Coolpix cameras work?

Most Coolpix files in our samples had no shutter count, so most Coolpix models are not on the verified list. Nikon DSLRs, Z cameras and Nikon 1 bodies are.

Is the photo uploaded?

No. The NEF or JPEG is read in your browser and never leaves your device.

Nikon Shutter Count Checker (NEF or JPEG)

Nikon writes the shutter count into every NEF and JPEG. Pick one recent original and the reader shows the count, plus the mechanical count on bodies that record it.

What the Nikon numbers mean

Shutter count (ExifTool ShutterCount): every frame, mechanical and electronic shutter together.
Mechanical shutter count (ExifTool MechanicalShutterCount): frames taken with the mechanical shutter only. Shown when the file has it.

On mirrorless bodies that shoot a lot with the electronic shutter the two numbers can be far apart. Our Z 6 sample reads 746 frames in total and 407 mechanical. The mechanical number is the one that relates to shutter wear.

Verified Nikon models (75)

Show the list (model names as the camera writes them)

COOLPIX A, NIKON 1 AW1, NIKON 1 J1, NIKON 1 J2, NIKON 1 J3, NIKON 1 J4, NIKON 1 J5, NIKON 1 S1, NIKON 1 S2, NIKON 1 V1, NIKON 1 V2, NIKON 1 V3, NIKON D2H, NIKON D2Hs, NIKON D2X, NIKON D2Xs, NIKON D3, NIKON D3S, NIKON D3X, NIKON D4, NIKON D4S, NIKON D5, NIKON D6, NIKON D40, NIKON D40X, NIKON D50, NIKON D60, NIKON D70, NIKON D70s, NIKON D80, NIKON D90, NIKON D200, NIKON D300, NIKON D300S, NIKON D500, NIKON D600, NIKON D610, NIKON D700, NIKON D750, NIKON D780, NIKON D800, NIKON D800E, NIKON D810, NIKON D850, NIKON D3000, NIKON D3100, NIKON D3200, NIKON D3300, NIKON D3400, NIKON D3500, NIKON D5000, NIKON D5100, NIKON D5200, NIKON D5300, NIKON D5500, NIKON D5600, NIKON D7000, NIKON D7100, NIKON D7200, NIKON D7500, NIKON Df, NIKON Z 5, NIKON Z 6, NIKON Z 6_2, NIKON Z 7, NIKON Z 7_2, NIKON Z 8, NIKON Z 9, NIKON Z 30, NIKON Z 50, NIKON Z f, NIKON Z fc, NIKON Z6_3, NIKON Z50_2, NIKON ZR

A model that is not listed gets “not verified yet” and no number, even if the file has a value.

Where Nikon stores the count

Nikon writes the count into its maker notes, the camera-specific block inside every NEF and JPEG. ExifTool reads it as tag 0x00a7 (ShutterCount) and the mechanical count as tag 0x0037 (MechanicalShutterCount). Nikon also uses the shutter count as the key that decrypts other parts of its maker notes (ExifTool’s tag notes).

When the tag holds 4294965247, ExifTool shows it as “n/a”. The reader treats that as no count found rather than showing a giant number.

Real readings from our test files

These public-domain NEFs were read by the tool on this page and by desktop ExifTool 13.59. Both gave the same numbers.

Test file (CC0, raw.pixls.us)	Model	Reader result
`DSC_5155.NEF`	NIKON D50	19,942
`DSC_0043.NEF`	NIKON D3500	574
`compressed_12_bit.NEF`	NIKON D750	5,710
`Nikon-D850-small.NEF`	NIKON D850	452 total, 452 mechanical
`DSC_0757.NEF`	NIKON Z 6	746 total, 407 mechanical
`Nikon_Z8_high_efficiency_low.NEF`	NIKON Z 8	2,567 total, 0 mechanical
`DSC_0043.NEF`	NIKON Z f	43 total, 43 mechanical

Check it on a computer instead

With ExifTool installed, the same numbers come from exiftool -ShutterCount -MechanicalShutterCount DSC_0001.NEF. That is the program this page runs in your browser, version 13.59.

How we verified Nikon

82 Nikon sample files from 75 models (JPEG, NEF and NRW) were read in the browser engine and with native ExifTool 13.59; every number matched. Coolpix models whose files had no count, and any Nikon body we have no sample from, get “not verified yet”.

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The reader runs ExifTool 13.59 by Phil Harvey (same terms as Perl: Artistic License or GPL) on zeroperl 1.0.10 (Apache-2.0), a WebAssembly build of Perl. Notices.

Nikon shutter count checker