How to show and change file extensions in Windows

Windows is pretty great with file extensions, letting you see the extensions and even change them if you need to. However, these options are kind of hidden from plain sight and require a bit of tweaking to get to. It’s quite easy, though, so let us show you how. Here’s how to show and change file extensions in Windows.

How to show and change file extensions in Windows

This process uses screenshots from Windows 10, but the process is the same for Windows 11 and most other versions of Windows. Open Windows File Explorer from the taskbar or by looking for it in Windows search. Navigate to the folder with the files in question.

On the menu ribbon at the top, click the tab that says View. Tick the box next to File name extensions in the Show/hide tab, located to the right, by clicking it.

Once you do that, the file extensions will be visible. You can check the file extensions at the end of the file name. To change the file extension, right-click the file, and click Rename.

Rename the extension at the end of the file name, located after the period. If the file in question does not have an extension, you can type in a period, followed by the file extension of your choice, with no spaces.

Once you have typed it in, just press the Enter key. Windows File Explorer will show you a warning about how changing the file extension may render the file unable to open. Click Yes.

The file extension will be changed. The file will appear with the new extension, and the file type will also report according to the new extension.

The example here shows a .exe image file changed to a .txt file, which isn’t really useful and only used for illustrative purposes. Such a file will show a random bunch of text when opened. To avoid damage to the file, keep a copy of the file before changing the extension, and change the extension back to the default one without modifying the file.