At One Place

.java files

.java file
Java Source
Java source code in plain text, compiled to .class files before it runs.

What opens a .java file

Windows
Visual Studio Code, IntelliJ IDEA, Eclipse, Notepad (built in)
macOS
Visual Studio Code, IntelliJ IDEA, TextEdit (built in)
Linux
Visual Studio Code, IntelliJ IDEA, Text Editor (built in)

What a .java file is

A .java file holds human-readable Java source. It does not run as-is: the compiler turns it into bytecode (.class), which the Java Virtual Machine executes, and a set of those is usually bundled into a .jar. The language convention is that the file name matches the public class inside it, so renaming one breaks the build.

Converting it

A .java file is commonly converted to .class, .jar or .txt. It is a plain text format, so any text editor can open and edit it directly.

Details

Extension
.java
Full name
Java Source
Category
Code and scripts
MIME type
text/x-java-source
Created by
Sun Microsystems / Oracle
Format
Plain text

Common questions

How do I open a .java file?
On Windows use Visual Studio Code; on macOS use Visual Studio Code; on Linux use Visual Studio Code. Java source code in plain text, compiled to .class files before it runs.
What is a .java file?
Java Source. A .java file holds human-readable Java source. It does not run as-is: the compiler turns it into bytecode (.class), which the Java Virtual Machine executes, and a set of those is usually bundled into a .jar.
Can I convert a .java file?
Yes. It is usually converted to .class, .jar or .txt, either by exporting from one of the programs listed above or with a format converter.

Related pages

Sources

  1. Media Types Registry — IANA
  2. Official vendor product documentation — At One Place

How these figures are compiled and checked