What Is an EPS File?

EPS stands for Encapsulated PostScript.

PostScript is a programming language that describes the appearance of a printed page. It was developed from 1982 by the founders of Adobe and others. It has become an industry standard for creating print output from a computer.

An Encapsulated PostScript file is a cut-down PostScript file which encapsulates an image only. The encapsulation means it can be used as a standalone graphics file.

An EPS file (.eps) can be placed within another PostScript file (.ps) to provide an image.

Note a PostScript file (.ps) is a print format, and has to be converted to .pdf to be viewable on screen. This can be done by Adobe Acrobat.