Short for Bitmap images, files with the BMP extension are uncompressed raster images comprising of rectangular grids of images. But first, you need to answer the all-important question: what is a BMP file? What Is a BMP file?ĭid your device fail to open a BMP file? You may not be able to troubleshoot the problem without a proper understanding of the BMP file format and how to open a BMP file. You need the right BMP viewer and an efficient image converter in case you need to convert them to other formats. Opening and viewing such files shouldn't necessarily be a big deal if you know what to do. It is, therefore, important to learn how to open a BMP file before you can think about editing or converting them to other formats. Most of the bitmaps are uncompressed and occupy a large space, but can be compressed without compromising their quality. This file type can store both monochrome and multi-color image data in either 16-, 32-, or 64-bit color depths. The BMP file type has become so popular that many of the proprietary pictures that you view are renamed BMP files.