Image Format Cheat Sheet — JPG vs PNG vs WebP vs AVIF

Picking the wrong image format is the cheapest mistake you can make for site speed. AVIF can be 50% smaller than JPG at the same visible quality — but it doesn't always pay to switch. Here's the decision tree.

The 10-second rule

• Photo, no transparency → WebP (or AVIF if your audience is on modern browsers only).
• Photo, needs to work everywhere → JPG.
• Logo, screenshot, or icon → PNG (or WebP for smaller files with same lossless quality).
• Animation → WebP (replaces GIF, 30-50% smaller).
• Vector art (logo, icon) → SVG (not on this list — use SVG when you can).

The full comparison

Real file-size comparison

Same 1920×1080 photo, same visible quality:

• JPG (quality 80) — 340 KB
• WebP (quality 80) — 210 KB (38% smaller)
• AVIF (quality 60) — 165 KB (51% smaller)
• PNG (lossless) — 2.4 MB (7× larger — never use for photos)

Convert any image with our free tools:

• Convert to WebP
• Convert to PNG
• Convert to JPG
• JPG compressor — pick a quality, see the saving.

For dense ZIP packing of an entire image library, use our bulk processing mode to convert hundreds of images at once.

Try our free tools

Most of these guides pair with a hands-on tool you can use right now — no sign-up required for the first run:

• Image resizer — pixel-perfect downscale + upscale.
• Convert to WebP — 30-50% smaller files than JPG.
• Background remover — one-click cutout, transparent PNG.
• Favicon generator — every browser size from one source.
• Social-media resizer — every platform's exact dimensions.
• Bulk processing — apply any tool to up to 200 images at once.

Browse the full tool catalog.