File extensions – definition and basic information


File extensions are the integral parts of the files that are on each computer. Often, when working on a computer, we encounter a wide range of files, such as docx, ppt, part, mp3 or rmvb. We realize that they are there – but we often do not know what they are for on our computer.

File extension, also known as the filename extension is a suffix added to the name of a computer file, usually consisting of a number of characters placed after the last dot in the filename, which gives us information about its coding. In other words a file extension is a file format. It allows the operating system (e.g. Windows) to recognize what program it should try to open the file.

In the table below you will find a random selection of popular file extensions.


File extension The full name of the file Category

BAT file extension

DOS Batch File

Executable Files

BIN file extension

Binary Disc Image

Disk Image Files

CFM file extension

ColdFusion Markup File

Web Files

CRX file extension

Chrome Extension

Plugin Files

CSS file extension

Cascading Style Sheet

Web Files

FLV file extension

Flash Video File

Video Files

GADGET file extension

Windows Gadget

Executable Files

MAX file extension

3ds Max Scene File

3D Image Files

PS file extension

PostScript File

Vector Image Files

ROM file extension

N64 Game ROM File

Game Files

RSS file extension

Rich Site Summary

Web Files

SH file extension

Bash Shell Script

Developer Files

TEX file extension

LaTeX Source Document

Text Files

TIFF file extension

Tagged Image File Format

Raster Image Files

TORRENT file extension

BitTorrent File

Misc Files