What is the PDD file format?
A .pdd file is a proprietary raster image format created by Adobe Systems for its PhotoDeluxe consumer photo-editing software. Structurally, it is a subset of Adobe's Photoshop .PSD format: both share the 8BPS magic bytes and the same big-endian container layout, but .pdd uses a simplified layer model suited to PhotoDeluxe's more limited editing feature set.
Adobe PhotoDeluxe was sold between 1996 and 2002 and targeted home users who wanted basic photo editing without Photoshop's complexity. The product was discontinued on July 8, 2002, with Photoshop Elements taking its place for the consumer market. Because .pdd is a PSD subset, Adobe Photoshop and Photoshop Elements can open .pdd files natively without a separate plugin.
Images support RGB and Grayscale color modes at up to 24 bpp, with RLE (PackBits) compression applied per channel. The format is limited to PSD version 1, with a maximum canvas size of 30,000 × 30,000 pixels. No new .pdd files are created today; modern workflows use .psd or web-friendly formats instead.
Security & safety
RISK: LOWRaster image file with no scripting or macro capability. Safe to open.
Format details
in a nutshellPrograms that open PDD files
Windows4 apps
macOS2 apps
Technical details
deep spec| Magic bytes | 8BPS (identical to Photoshop PSD) |
| Container | PSD/8BPS (Adobe proprietary) |
| Encoding | Binary |
| Byte order | Big-endian |
| Compression | RLE (PackBits) per channel, or uncompressed |
| Color modes | RGB, Grayscale, Bitmap |
| Color depth | 1-24 bpp |
| Canvas size limit | 30,000 × 30,000 px (PSD v1 limit) |
| Typical file size | 100 KB - 50 MB |
| Layer support | Limited; simplified layer model compared to full Photoshop PSD |
| Associated OS | Windows, macOS (Mac OS 9 / OS X) |
| Developer | Adobe Systems |
| Released | 1996 (Adobe PhotoDeluxe 1.0) |
| Latest version | PhotoDeluxe 4.0 (final, 2001) |
PDD conversions
Community Q&A
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