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

DAT file extension

Data File

Data Files

DBF file extension

Database File

Database Files

DNG file extension

Digital Negative Image File

Camera Raw Files

GAM file extension

Saved Game File

Game Files

GBR file extension

Gerber File

Data Files

GIF file extension

Graphical Interchange Format File

Raster Image Files

ICNS file extension

Mac OS X Icon Resource File

System Files

ICS file extension

iCalendar File

Misc Files

JS file extension

JavaScript File

Web Files

ODT file extension

OpenDocument Text Document

Text Files

PART file extension

Partially Downloaded File

Misc Files

RTF file extension

Rich Text Format File

Text Files

TAX2012 file extension

TurboTax 2012 Tax Return

Data Files

TIF file extension

Tagged Image File

Raster Image Files

VCXPROJ file extension

Visual C++ Project

Developer Files