This method allows you to view and modify the full list of file associations available in Windows 10. If you do not check this box, the file will open once in the selected program, but the file association will not be changed universally. NOTE: To permanently change the file association, make sure to select the option 'Always use this app to open. In the example above, clicking OK would set Paint as the default program for all files with a '.png' extension. Once you have selected a program, check the box next to 'Always use this app to open. This window allows you to select a default program for the selected file type.

In the screenshot below, you can see that Microsoft Photos is associated with '.png' files.Īfter you select 'Choose another app,' the following 'How do you want to open this file?' dialog box appears. To change the file association for a specific file type, right-click a file and select Open With → Choose another app. In Windows 10, there are two methods you can use to change file associations. After you update the file association, when you double-click a PNG file, it will open in Paint rather than Photos by default. You can associate a different program, like Microsoft Paint, with all files that have a '.png' extension. If you prefer to use another program to open PNG files, you can change the file association.

Windows 10 uses file associations to determine which program will automatically open a specific file type on your computer.

Open paint in windows 10