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

CPP file extension

C++ Source Code File

Developer Files

EXE file extension

Windows Executable File

Executable Files

ICO file extension

Icon File

System Files

M4A file extension

MPEG-4 Audio File

Audio Files

ODT file extension

OpenDocument Text Document

Text Files

PIF file extension

Program Information File

Executable Files

PPT file extension

PowerPoint Presentation

Data Files

PPTX file extension

PowerPoint Open XML Presentation

Data Files

PY file extension

Python Script

Developer Files

RA file extension

Real Audio File

Audio Files

RM file extension

Real Media File

Video Files

TIF file extension

Tagged Image File

Raster Image Files

VCXPROJ file extension

Visual C++ Project

Developer Files

WMV file extension

Windows Media Video File

Video Files

ZIP file extension

Zipped File

Compressed Files