What is a AEP file? An AEP file is a project created by Adobe After Effects, a video editing application for creating motion graphics and visual effects. It contains one or more compositions comprised of layered elements, such as video clips, audio, images, text, and effects. AEP files also store project settings such as resolution, color space, time format, and rendering options.

More Information AEP file open in Adobe After Effects 2025 When you save a project in After Effects, it creates an AEP file to preserve your timeline, assets, and settings. However, the file does not contain the actual media files; it only stores references to their locations. If you move or rename those files outside After Effects, you will need to relink them when reopening the project. You can save After Effects projects in two formats: Binary (AEP) – the standard format, which loads quickly and is ideal for most users. XML ( .AEPX ) – a text-based format that's larger and slower to open but can be read or modified with an XML editor, making it useful for automation or backups. You can also create Team Projects, which are saved to Adobe's cloud and allow for real-time collaborative editing (available to Creative Cloud Enterprise and Teams users). Additionally, After Effects supports project templates saved in .AET (binary) or .AETX (XML) formats for reusing design elements across projects.