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

CFG file extension

Configuration File

Settings Files

DRV file extension

Device Driver

System Files

EPS file extension

Encapsulated PostScript File

Vector Image Files

GAM file extension

Saved Game File

Game Files

JPG file extension

JPEG Image

Raster Image Files

KEY file extension

Keynote Presentation

Data Files

MOV file extension

Apple QuickTime Movie

Video Files

MP3 file extension

MP3 Audio File

Audio Files

PART file extension

Partially Downloaded File

Misc Files

RTF file extension

Rich Text Format File

Text Files

TAR file extension

Consolidated Unix File Archive

Data Files

TEX file extension

LaTeX Source Document

Text Files

VCXPROJ file extension

Visual C++ Project

Developer Files

WPD file extension

WordPerfect Document

Text Files

WSF file extension

Windows Script File

Executable Files