BMP Format — What is Bitmap Image File?
BMP is an uncompressed raster image format native to Windows. It produces very large files but preserves exact pixel data without any compression artifacts.
Extension
.bmp
Compression
Lossless
Transparency
No
MIME Type
image/bmp
Pros & Cons
✅ Pros
- • No compression artifacts
- • Simple format
- • Wide Windows support
- • Exact pixel preservation
❌ Cons
- • Very large file sizes
- • No transparency
- • Not suitable for web
- • Inefficient storage
Best Use Cases
- Windows applications
- Pixel-perfect preservation
- Simple image editing
- Legacy systems
Technical Details
BMP stores pixel data in a device-independent bitmap format. It supports various color depths (1, 4, 8, 16, 24, 32-bit) and optional RLE compression.
History
BMP was developed by Microsoft for Windows and OS/2. It has been part of the Windows operating system since version 3.0 in 1990.