Complete comparison of PNG, JPG, and WebP formats. When to use each, file size differences, quality trade-offs, and browser support explained clearly.
JPEG uses lossy compression designed for photographs — images with smooth color gradients, natural textures, and complex scenes. It has been the dominant photo format since 1992.
Use JPEG for: photographs, blog images, social media photos, email attachments, anything requiring maximum compatibility across all software.
Avoid JPEG for: logos, screenshots with text, graphics with sharp edges, images you will edit multiple times, anything requiring transparency.
PNG stores image data losslessly — the decompressed file is bit-for-bit identical to the original. Perfect for graphics that must stay pixel-perfect.
Use PNG for: logos, icons, brand assets, screenshots, images with transparent backgrounds, graphics containing text.
Avoid PNG for: photographs on web pages (files are 3–5× larger than JPEG), any context where file size matters significantly.
Developed by Google, WebP consistently outperforms both JPEG and PNG in compression while supporting transparency. Browser support covers 97%+ of web users.
Use WebP as your default for all new web projects.
| Format | File Size | Quality |
|---|---|---|
| PNG lossless | 2.8 MB | Perfect |
| JPEG 95% | 890 KB | Near-perfect |
| JPEG 85% | 380 KB | Excellent |
| WebP 85% | 260 KB | Excellent |
| JPEG 75% | 210 KB | Good |
| WebP 75% | 155 KB | Good |
✓ Needs transparency? → PNG or WebP
✓ Photograph for web? → WebP first, JPEG as fallback
✓ Logo or graphic with text? → PNG or SVG
✓ Maximum compatibility needed (email)? → JPEG for photos, PNG for graphics
✓ Best compression for modern browsers? → WebP
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