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

CBR file extension

Comic Book RAR Archive

Compressed Files

CUE file extension

Cue Sheet File

Disk Image Files

DEB file extension

Debian Software Package

Compressed Files

DESKTHEMEPACK file extension

Windows 8 Desktop Theme Pack File

System Files

GED file extension

GEDCOM Genealogy Data File

Data Files

GZ file extension

Gnu Zipped Archive

Compressed Files

LNK file extension

Windows File Shortcut

System Files

M3U file extension

Media Playlist File

Audio Files

ODT file extension

OpenDocument Text Document

Text Files

PPT file extension

PowerPoint Presentation

Data Files

RTF file extension

Rich Text Format File

Text Files

VOB file extension

DVD Video Object File

Video Files

WAV file extension

WAVE Audio File

Audio Files

WPS file extension

Microsoft Works Word Processor Document

Text Files

XLSX file extension

Microsoft Excel Open XML Spreadsheet

Spreadsheet Files