Question 1

What is a MIME type?

Accepted Answer

A MIME type (Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions) is a standardized label that describes the format of a file or data. Browsers and servers use MIME types in the Content-Type header to know how to handle content, e.g. text/html for HTML pages or image/png for PNG images.

Question 2

How do I find the MIME type for a file extension?

Accepted Answer

Type the extension (e.g. pdf, mp4, json) in the search box and the matching MIME type appears instantly. Switch to MIME-to-extension mode to search in the opposite direction.

Question 3

What is the difference between application/octet-stream and a specific MIME type?

Accepted Answer

application/octet-stream is a generic binary type used as a fallback when the server does not know the specific format. Browsers typically offer to download such files instead of displaying them. Always use the specific MIME type when known.

Question 4

Are these MIME types standard?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The list follows IANA registered MIME types and common de-facto standards. Some entries have multiple valid types — for example .js can be text/javascript (modern) or application/javascript (legacy).