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

BMP file extension

Bitmap Image File

Raster Image Files

CBR file extension

Comic Book RAR Archive

Compressed Files

CRX file extension

Chrome Extension

Plugin Files

CUE file extension

Cue Sheet File

Disk Image Files

H file extension

C/C++/Objective-C Header File

Developer Files

MP4 file extension

MPEG-4 Video File

Video Files

MPA file extension

MPEG-2 Audio File

Audio Files

MSI file extension

Windows Installer Package

Misc Files

PNG file extension

Portable Network Graphic

Raster Image Files

RTF file extension

Rich Text Format File

Text Files

SRT file extension

SubRip Subtitle File

Video Files

TARGZ file extension

Compressed Tarball File

Compressed Files

VCXPROJ file extension

Visual C++ Project

Developer Files

ZIP file extension

Zipped File

Compressed Files