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

BIN file extension

Binary Disc Image

Disk Image Files

CBR file extension

Comic Book RAR Archive

Compressed Files

CRDOWNLOAD file extension

Chrome Partially Downloaded File

Misc Files

DEB file extension

Debian Software Package

Compressed Files

DEM file extension

Video Game Demo File

Game Files

DMP file extension

Windows Memory Dump

System Files

EXE file extension

Windows Executable File

Executable Files

ICNS file extension

Mac OS X Icon Resource File

System Files

INDD file extension

Adobe InDesign Document

Layout Files

PIF file extension

Program Information File

Executable Files

PRF file extension

Outlook Profile File

Settings Files

TXT file extension

Plain Text File

Text Files

VCF file extension

vCard File

Data Files

XML file extension

XML File

Data Files

YUV file extension

YUV Encoded Image File

Raster Image Files