Most format advice is written for developers optimizing a website. This is written for everyone else, the person deciding what to attach to an email, upload to a form, send to a printer, or put on a social profile.
Four formats cover almost everything you will meet, and WebP vs PNG vs JPG is the comparison that decides most of it.
The short version
Photographs become JPG. Small files, and the compression suits gradual color changes.
Logos, icons, screenshots, anything with text or transparency become PNG.
Images on your own website become WebP or AVIF, for speed.
Anything you are sending to another person becomes JPG or PNG, because they open everywhere.
If you only remember one thing, photographs are JPG, graphics are PNG, and the newer formats are for your website rather than your email.
JPG
JPG is from 1992 and has not been seriously challenged for photographs since. It uses lossy compression, which means it discards detail the eye is unlikely to notice in order to make the file dramatically smaller.
Strengths. Photographs, gradual color changes, small file sizes, and being readable by literally everything.
Weaknesses. Text, sharp edges and flat color. JPG compression leaves a faint halo around lettering, which is why screenshots saved as JPG look slightly smudged. It also has no transparency at all.
Worth knowing. Each time you edit and re-save a JPG, it is compressed again and loses a little more. A single conversion is harmless. Twenty rounds of editing is not.
PNG
PNG is lossless, so it stores the image exactly as it is. Nothing is discarded and nothing degrades no matter how many times you re-save.
Strengths. Logos, icons, screenshots, diagrams, anything with text, and anything needing a transparent background.
Weaknesses. Large photographs. A photo saved as PNG can easily be five to ten times the size of the same photo as JPG, with no visible benefit.
Worth knowing. PNG is the reason a logo can sit on a colored background without a white box. That alone makes it the default for brand files. See transparent backgrounds explained for why that works.
WebP
WebP is Google's attempt to replace both. It can do lossy compression like JPG, lossless like PNG, and transparency like PNG, usually in a smaller file than either.
Strengths. Making websites faster. Typical savings are 25 to 35 percent against a comparable JPG.
Weaknesses. Being opened by other people. Browsers all support it. Desktop software, upload forms and older operating systems are patchier, which is why saving a WebP from a website so often leads to a file nothing will open.
Worth knowing. Use it on your own site, but convert before sending one to someone else. Our WebP to PNG and WebP to JPG converters run in your browser without uploading anything.
AVIF
AVIF is the newest of the four and compresses harder than all of them, often producing files around half the size of a JPG at similar quality. It is built on the AV1 video codec.
Strengths. File size. Nothing else here comes close.
Weaknesses. Compatibility, for now. It is roughly where WebP was a few years ago. Browser support is good, everything else is catching up.
Worth knowing. If you have an AVIF you cannot open, it is not broken, just early. Our AVIF to JPG converter handles it.
Converting to an older format usually makes the file bigger, sometimes much bigger. That is expected. JPG and PNG are older designs, so storing the same picture takes more room. You are trading size for compatibility.
Side by side
Format | Transparency | Lossless | File size | Opens everywhere |
|---|---|---|---|---|
JPG | No | No | Small | Yes |
PNG | Yes | Yes | Large | Yes |
WebP | Yes | Optional | Smaller | Mostly |
AVIF | Yes | Optional | Smallest | Not yet |
What about SVG
SVG belongs in a different category, because it is not made of pixels at all. It stores shapes as mathematical instructions, so it can be drawn at any size without ever blurring.
That makes it ideal for logos and icons and useless for photographs. If your logo exists as an SVG, that is the file to keep, because every other format can be exported from it. The reverse is not true.
The decision, in practice
Ask what the image is, then where it is going.
Is it a photograph? JPG, unless you need transparency, which photographs rarely do.
Does it have text, flat color, or a transparent background? PNG.
Is it a logo and do you have the vector? SVG where supported, PNG elsewhere.
Is it going on your own website? WebP or AVIF, with a JPG or PNG fallback.
Is it going to another person? JPG or PNG, always.
That last rule is the one most worth keeping. Whatever you use internally, send people something that opens.
Is WebP better than PNG?
For a website, usually yes. WebP supports transparency like PNG but produces smaller files, so pages load faster. For a file you are sending to someone or uploading somewhere, PNG is safer, because WebP support outside browsers is still inconsistent.
Should I use JPG or PNG for my logo?
PNG, in almost every case. A logo usually needs a transparent background so it can sit on any color, and JPG cannot store transparency. JPG also blurs sharp edges and lettering slightly, which is exactly what a logo is made of.
Why is my PNG so large?
PNG is lossless, so it stores every pixel exactly rather than discarding detail. That is ideal for logos and screenshots and wasteful for photographs. If your PNG is a photo with no transparency, JPG will be far smaller with no visible difference.
Will converting between formats lose quality?
Converting to PNG does not, since PNG is lossless. Converting to JPG discards a small amount of detail, though at high quality it is not visible at normal viewing sizes. What causes real damage is repeatedly editing and re-saving as JPG, since each save compresses again.
Should I use AVIF yet?
On your own website, yes, with a fallback for older browsers. For files you send to other people, not yet. Support outside browsers is still limited enough that the recipient may not be able to open it.
