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

AI file extension

Adobe Illustrator File

Vector Image Files

AIF file extension

Audio Interchange File Format

Audio Files

COM file extension

DOS Command File

Executable Files

CPP file extension

C++ Source Code File

Developer Files

FLV file extension

Flash Video File

Video Files

GAM file extension

Saved Game File

Game Files

JPG file extension

JPEG Image

Raster Image Files

JSP file extension

Java Server Page

Web Files

M file extension

Objective-C Implementation File

Developer Files

M3U file extension

Media Playlist File

Audio Files

ODT file extension

OpenDocument Text Document

Text Files

ROM file extension

N64 Game ROM File

Game Files

SDF file extension

Standard Data File

Data Files

TEX file extension

LaTeX Source Document

Text Files

XML file extension

XML File

Data Files