Your Complete Guide to File Types and Extensions. Explore detailed information about hundreds of file formats, their uses, benefits, and fascinating facts. Perfect for developers, designers, and anyone working with digital files.
Click on any category to explore detailed information about specific file types, their history, uses, and interesting facts.
PDF, DOCX, TXT, RTF, ODT, and more
→ View Complete Document GuideJPG, PNG, SVG, GIF, WebP, and more
→ View Complete Image GuideMP3, WAV, FLAC, AAC, OGG, and more
→ View Complete Audio GuideMP4, AVI, MOV, MKV, WebM, and more
→ View Complete Video GuideZIP, RAR, 7Z, TAR, GZ, and more
→ View Complete Archive GuideJS, PY, HTML, CSS, PHP, and more
→ View Complete Programming GuideThe ZIP file format was created by Phil Katz in 1989 and has become one of the most universally supported archive formats. Despite being over 30 years old, it's still the go-to choice for file compression and distribution.
Here are some of the most commonly encountered file types with detailed explanations:
Cool Fact: PDF was invented by Adobe co-founder John Warnock through a project code-named "Camelot" in the early 1990s. PDFs can contain 3D models, videos, and interactive elements, not just static text and images.
Benefits: PDFs maintain exact formatting across all devices and can be digitally signed with cryptographic signatures, providing legal validity in many jurisdictions.
Cool Fact: JPEG was developed by the Joint Photographic Experts Group in 1992. The compression algorithm can reduce file sizes by up to 95% while maintaining acceptable image quality.
Benefits: Excellent for photographs with gradual color transitions and widely supported across all platforms and devices.
Cool Fact: MP3 was developed by a team at Fraunhofer Society in Germany in the late 1980s. It revolutionized music distribution and made portable digital music players possible.
Benefits: Excellent compression ratio maintaining good audio quality, and universal compatibility with virtually all audio devices and software.