PSD File Format (.psd): What It Is and How to Open It

PSD at a glance#

Full name	Adobe Photoshop bitmap
File extension	.psd
Category	Image Files
Developer	Adobe
First released	1990
MIME types	image/vnd.adobe.photoshopapplication/x-photoshop
Compression	Lossless
Specification	Adobe Photoshop File Formats Specification
FileFlip support	FileFlip reads and writes this format

What a .psd file can hold#

These are the things a PSD file either supports or does not, and they are what decides whether a conversion keeps everything or quietly drops something.

Transparency (alpha channel)	Yes
Layers	Yes
Lossless compression	Yes
Embedded metadata	Yes
Colour profiles	Yes
High dynamic range	Yes
Selectable text	Yes

Strengths and limitations of PSD#

What PSD does well

Every layer, mask, adjustment layer and text object stays independently editable rather than baked into one image
Supports up to 56 channels per image, enough for elaborate composites and spot-colour work
Bit depth up to 32-bit floating point per channel, so high-precision and HDR photographic work doesn't get clipped

Where PSD falls short

Not viewable in a web browser or most non-Adobe software without flattening first
Capped at 30,000 pixels per side and roughly 2GB per file; larger documents need the incompatible PSB variant instead
Layers, masks, adjustment layers and paths are all discarded the moment the file is flattened to JPEG or PNG

Keep a design as PSD while it's still being edited, so layers, masks and adjustment layers stay available for later changes.

Convert PSD to JPEG or PNG once a design is finished and needs to be viewed on the web or by someone without Photoshop, since flattening is what makes it viewable everywhere.

How to open a .psd file#

A .psd file opens in the programs below, grouped by the platform you are on. If you would rather not install anything, FileFlip converts PSD into a format your machine already opens, and it does it in the browser tab rather than on a server.

Platform	Programs that open it
Windows	Adobe Photoshop, Affinity Photo, Krita, Corel Painter
macOS	Adobe Photoshop, Affinity Photo, Preview, Krita
Linux	GIMP, Krita
Web	Photopea, FileFlip

PSD questions people ask#

What happens to my layers when I convert a PSD to JPEG?

Converting a PSD to JPEG merges every layer into one flat plane, bakes layer masks and adjustment layers permanently into the pixels, and rasterizes any text so it's no longer editable. Paths and guides are dropped entirely, since JPEG has nowhere to store them.

Is a PSB file the same as PSD?

PSB shares PSD's underlying container and specification but sets a different internal version number, which lets a PSB file exceed PSD's 30,000-pixel and roughly 2GB limits. A standard PSD reader can't open a PSB file and vice versa, so the two are related but not interchangeable.

Can I open a PSD file without Photoshop?

Yes. Affinity Photo, GIMP, Krita and the browser-based Photopea all open PSD files, and macOS Preview shows a flattened composite. Full layer, adjustment-layer and text fidelity is most reliable in Photoshop and Affinity Photo; the others vary in how much of the layer structure survives.

Does converting PSD to PNG lose the text layers?

Yes, converting a PSD to PNG rasterizes any text layer into fixed pixels, so the underlying font, size and editable string are gone, leaving only the shape of the letters behind. The text can no longer be selected or edited after that.

Converting PSD files#

Every conversion runs inside your browser. The file is read from your disk, the work happens on your own machine, and nothing is uploaded. How FileFlip works names the engine behind each family and how to verify that for yourself.

PSD File Format (.psd)