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MIME Types

A MIME type tells the browser how to handle a file it receives. When a browser downloads a file instead of displaying it, a missing or wrong MIME type is usually the cause. cPanel lets you add the type your file needs.

What a MIME Type Is

When your server sends a file to a browser, it also sends a MIME type — a short label like text/html, image/png, or application/json. The browser reads that label to decide what to do: render the page, show the image, run the script, or offer the file as a download. The label is matched to a file by its extension.

The Symptom That Needs a MIME Type

The tell-tale sign is that the browser downloads a file instead of rendering it. If a web font never loads, or a resource shows up as a downloaded file instead of being used by the page, the server is likely sending it with a generic type such as application/octet-stream because it does not recognize the extension. Adding the correct MIME type fixes this.

Adding a Custom MIME Type

  1. Log into cPanel.
  2. In the Advanced section, click MIME Types.
  3. Under Create a MIME Type, enter the type in the MIME Type field — for example font/woff2.
  4. In the Extension(s) field, enter the file extension without the dot — for example woff2. You can list several extensions separated by spaces.
  5. Click Add. The new type applies immediately.
Note Two common examples: to serve a web app manifest, add the type application/manifest+json for the extension webmanifest. To serve a modern web font, add font/woff2 for the extension woff2.

System vs User-Defined Types

The MIME Types page lists two groups. System MIME types are the defaults provided by the server and cover almost every common file. You cannot edit or remove these. User-defined MIME types are the ones you add, and only these can be edited or deleted. If you add a type for an extension that a system type already covers, your user-defined entry takes precedence.

Tip You only need a custom MIME type for unusual or newer file extensions. Standard files such as HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and common images are already handled by the system types, so there is no need to add them.

If It Still Downloads

If a file still downloads after you add its MIME type, clear your browser cache and reload, since the browser may have remembered the old response. Double-check that the extension is spelled correctly and entered without the leading dot. If it persists, open a support ticket and include the file name and the URL so we can check the response for you.