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

PIF file extension

Program Information File

Executable Files

GPX file extension

GPS Exchange File

GIS Files

EXE file extension

Windows Executable File

Executable Files

JAR file extension

Java Archive File

Executable Files

MPA file extension

MPEG-2 Audio File

Audio Files

7Z file extension

7-Zip Compressed File

Compressed Files

FLA file extension

Adobe Flash Animation

Developer Files

XML file extension

XML File

Data Files

APK file extension

Android Package File

Executable Files

SVG file extension

Scalable Vector Graphics File

Vector Image Files

IFF file extension

Interchange File Format

Audio Files

PNG file extension

Portable Network Graphic

Raster Image Files

VCXPROJ file extension

Visual C++ Project

Developer Files

LOG file extension

Log File

Text Files

ASP file extension

Active Server Page

Web Files