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

CRDOWNLOAD file extension

Chrome Partially Downloaded File

Misc Files

DEB file extension

Debian Software Package

Compressed Files

EPS file extension

Encapsulated PostScript File

Vector Image Files

GAM file extension

Saved Game File

Game Files

JAVA file extension

Java Source Code File

Developer Files

KEYCHAIN file extension

Mac OS X Keychain File

Data Files

KML file extension

Keyhole Markup Language File

GIS Files

OBJ file extension

Wavefront 3D Object File

3D Image Files

OTF file extension

OpenType Font

Font Files

PSPIMAGE file extension

PaintShop Pro Image

Raster Image Files

TGA file extension

Targa Graphic

Raster Image Files

TORRENT file extension

BitTorrent File

Misc Files

WAV file extension

WAVE Audio File

Audio Files

WMV file extension

Windows Media Video File

Video Files

3G2 file extension

3GPP2 Multimedia File

Video Files