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

CFM file extension

ColdFusion Markup File

Web Files

EPS file extension

Encapsulated PostScript File

Vector Image Files

GZ file extension

Gnu Zipped Archive

Compressed Files

JPG file extension

JPEG Image

Raster Image Files

MP3 file extension

MP3 Audio File

Audio Files

MSG file extension

Outlook Mail Message

Text Files

PIF file extension

Program Information File

Executable Files

PL file extension

Perl Script

Developer Files

TOAST file extension

Toast Disc Image

Disk Image Files

WMA file extension

Windows Media Audio File

Audio Files

WSF file extension

Windows Script File

Executable Files

XLR file extension

Works Spreadsheet

Spreadsheet Files

XML file extension

XML File

Data Files

3G2 file extension

3GPP2 Multimedia File

Video Files

3GP file extension

3GPP Multimedia File

Video Files