{"id":1381,"date":"2021-12-16T13:30:00","date_gmt":"2021-12-16T18:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev.ironmarkusa.com\/what-is-a-native-file\/"},"modified":"2025-09-16T15:50:50","modified_gmt":"2025-09-16T19:50:50","slug":"what-is-a-native-file","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ironmarkusa.com\/what-is-a-native-file\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is a Native File?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Have you ever gone to save a file you\u2019ve been working on and felt overwhelmed by having to choose which file format you save it in? Or did you not know which one was best? Or what about when you\u2019re choosing between a PNG and a JPG?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ve all been there – you want to make sure you save it in the right format, but how do you tell which one is right for your project? Don\u2019t worry, you\u2019re not alone. We\u2019re here to help you understand file formats and native files, so you and your files don\u2019t get lost in the shuffle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Is a Native File?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A native file is the default<\/em> file format in which the software program that originated the file creates. When creating, saving, or opening files, the software employs the native file format. Essentially, a file\u2019s native format is the format of the application it is created in. If a spreadsheet was prepared with Microsoft Excel, for example, the native format of that document is the original Excel format (.xls).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many software builders use native file formats that can only be utilized by their own programs (at least, at first). However, if the developed software becomes widely used, other programmers may produce software that copies or expands its capabilities, and they may utilize this file format as well, making it a standard in that field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ability to save files in formats other than their native ones is common. The data in a Microsoft Word document file, for example, is customized and optimized to be read only<\/em> in Microsoft Word, and the file extension is .doc or .docx. Files can be saved in a variety of formats, including .txt (plain text file), .pdf (portable document format), and .rtf (rich text file).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Native file formats are also important to know for graphic files, which you\u2019ll see used by designers and those involved in creative projects. Designers need the right files to do their best work and to ensure you receive a final deliverable with the best look, color, and resolution. We\u2019ve all been there when a photo, a sign, or a design comes back all blurry and faded. That could be because the native file was not used.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When it comes to native files, the individual programs each have certain ways of using and interacting with files in their native formats, such as Adobe Photoshop\u2019s .psd (photoshop document) format or Adobe Illustrators .ai file format. When exporting a file, it\u2019s important to use a common or shared file format that the different programs you\u2019re using can interact with, but note that you may lose the ability to do certain things<\/a>, such as Photoshop\u2019s layer and styling capabilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Proprietary file formats are those that can only be read by their own software and other applications that they have permission to use. If team members utilize different types of software, proprietary formats may make working seamlessly difficult. Non-proprietary file formats are vendor-agnostic, meaning they may be read and altered by any software that is compatible with them. These are frequently open source, with the intended purpose of making it easy to collaborate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In many cases, it\u2019s best to save files in a program’s native file format because you can be certain it will store all the data you have created within the program. And while other formats might be more compatible with other programs, that doesn\u2019t mean that they save all the information in the file. For example, if you were to save a Word document as a plain text file, all the text formatting that\u2019s been added would end up being removed. The same goes for saving a Photoshop document as a JPEG. This can reduce the image quality and flatten the image’s layers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Benefits of a Native File<\/h3>\n\n\n\n