Loading raster data
To load raster files using the Data Source Manager, click on the Open Data Source Manager icon 
, or press Ctrl + L. From the list of layer types on the left, choose Raster.
You now have the option to load a raster file for File or Protocol: HTTP(S), cloud, etc. (much like Vector):
The commonly used raster types supported by GDAL are as follows:
- ArcInfo ASCII Grid (.asc)
- Erdas Imagine (.img)
- GeoTIFF (.tif/.tiff)
- JPEG/JPEG-2000 (.jpg or .jpeg/.jp2 or .j2k)
- Portable Network Graphics (.png)
- RasterLite (.sqlite)
- USGS Optional ASCII DEM (.dem)
The Geospatial Data Abstraction Library ( GDAL) is a free and open source library that translates and processes vector and raster geospatial data formats. QGIS, as well as many other programs, uses GDAL to handle many geospatial data processing tasks.
You may see references to OGR or GDAL/OGR as you work with QGIS and GDAL. OGR Simple Features Library references the vector processing parts of GDAL. OGR is not really a standalone project, as it is part of the GDAL code now; however, for historical reasons, OGR is still used. More information about GDAL and OGR can be found at http://gdal.org. GDAL is an OSGeo ( http://osgeo.org) project.
You may see references to OGR or GDAL/OGR as you work with QGIS and GDAL. OGR Simple Features Library references the vector processing parts of GDAL. OGR is not really a standalone project, as it is part of the GDAL code now; however, for historical reasons, OGR is still used. More information about GDAL and OGR can be found at http://gdal.org. GDAL is an OSGeo ( http://osgeo.org) project.