JPG, PNG, WEBP or HEIC: which image format to use
Use JPG for photos, PNG for logos, screenshots and images with a transparent background, and WEBP for publishing on websites with lighter files. iPhone HEIC photos should be converted to JPG when the destination program or site does not accept the format.
Why there are so many formats
Each image format solves a different problem. Some prioritize small files, others preserve every detail, others support transparency or animation. Choosing the right format makes a website load faster, an email fit within the limit and an image look sharp where it matters.
JPG: the standard for photographs
JPG (or JPEG) compresses photos with controlled losses, producing small files that look good. It is accepted by practically every program, website and phone. It does not support transparency, and every time the image is saved again with compression, a little quality is lost. Use it for photos, product images and any image where file size matters.
PNG: sharpness and transparency
PNG compresses without losses, keeping edges and text perfectly sharp, and supports a transparent background. That makes it the best choice for logos, icons, screenshots and graphics. For photographs, however, it produces files much larger than JPG.
WEBP: lightweight for the web
WEBP was created to make website images lighter. It produces files smaller than JPG and PNG at equivalent quality and supports transparency. It is supported by all current browsers, but not every editing program or upload service recognizes it. It is great for publishing on the web; for sending to someone, JPG is still the safer choice.
HEIC and HEIF: iPhone photos
iPhones save photos as HEIC, an efficient format that takes about half the space of a JPG. The problem is compatibility: many Windows computers, upload systems and programs cannot open HEIC. In those cases, convert the photo to JPG with Convert Image, which also accepts HEIF, AVIF, TIFF, BMP, GIF, SVG, ICO and camera RAW files such as CR2, NEF, ARW and DNG.
How to convert an image step by step
- Open the Convert Image tool and upload one or more images.
- Choose the output format: JPG for photos, PNG for logos and transparency, WEBP for websites.
- Click convert and download the result. With several files, the download comes as a ZIP.
After converting: size and dimensions
The format is only part of an image’s weight. Oversized dimensions are the most common cause of heavy files: a phone photo is thousands of pixels wide, far more than any website needs. With Resize Image you reduce the dimensions, and with Compress Image you adjust the quality level. Together, the two steps usually shrink a photo from several megabytes to a few hundred kilobytes.
Rule of thumb: convert once from the original and avoid converting repeatedly between lossy formats, because the quality only goes down.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between JPG and PNG?
JPG uses lossy compression and produces small files, ideal for photos. PNG uses lossless compression and supports transparency, ideal for logos, icons and sharp text.
How do I open iPhone HEIC photos on Windows?
Convert the photos to JPG with Convert Image. JPG opens on any computer, phone and upload system.
Is WEBP better than JPG?
For websites, usually yes: it produces smaller files at equivalent quality. For sending to other people or uploading to portals, JPG is still more compatible.