Image Format Converter
Convert images between PNG, JPG, WebP, AVIF, GIF, BMP, TIFF, ICO and more — free, in your browser, no upload to any server. Batch convert multiple files, control quality, set a custom background for transparent PNGs, and get a live before/after size comparison. No watermark, ever.
Image Format Converter Tool
All 12+ supported image formats — what each one is for
Choosing the wrong format costs performance, quality and compatibility. This guide covers every format this tool supports — from the ubiquitous JPEG to the cutting-edge AVIF — so you can convert with confidence.
The universal standard for photographs since 1992. Lossy compression makes files small but introduces artefacts at low quality settings. No transparency support — transparent pixels become solid on export. Best for photographs shared on the web, social media or email where file size matters more than pixel perfection.
The go-to format for graphics, logos, screenshots and anything requiring transparency. Lossless compression preserves every pixel exactly, making PNG ideal for images with sharp text, flat colours and UI elements. File sizes are larger than JPEG for photographs, but the quality is perfect. Supported everywhere — browsers, design tools, operating systems.
Google's 2010 format designed to replace both JPEG and PNG on the web. WebP delivers 25–34% smaller files than JPEG at equivalent quality and 26% smaller than PNG losslessly. Supports transparency, animation, lossy and lossless modes. Browser support is universal as of 2024. The safest modern format choice for web developers.
The leading next-generation web format, based on the AV1 video codec. AVIF achieves 50% smaller files than JPEG and 20–30% smaller than WebP at comparable visual quality. Full browser support was achieved in 2024, and major platforms including WordPress and Shopify serve AVIF automatically. Use AVIF for web images with WebP as a fallback — this is the recommended pattern for 2025 and beyond.
Apple's default photo format since iPhone 7 (iOS 11). HEIC stores images 50% smaller than JPEG at equivalent quality, plus supports 16-bit colour, HDR and multi-image containers (burst shots, Live Photos). The problem: browser support outside Safari is minimal due to HEVC licensing costs. Convert HEIC to JPG, PNG or WebP to share photos across platforms and devices without compatibility issues.
The most capable image format ever standardised. JPEG XL achieves 35–55% smaller files than JPEG, supports HDR, 32-bit colour, multiple layers, CMYK and animation. Its unique lossless JPEG transcoding reduces existing JPEG files ~20% with no re-encoding. Safari shipped JPEG XL support in 2022; Chrome added it to Chromium in January 2026. Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, GIMP and Affinity all read and write JXL. The format to adopt for professional photography and archiving workflows.
The original web animation format, dating from 1987. GIF uses lossless LZW compression but is limited to a 256-colour palette — making it unsuitable for photographs but fine for flat-colour graphics and simple animations. File sizes for animations are large compared to modern alternatives. Convert GIF animations to WebP for typically 50–70% smaller animated files with better colour fidelity.
Microsoft's uncompressed bitmap format — the raw pixel data with no compression applied. BMP files are large (a 1920×1080 BMP is ~6 MB vs ~200 KB for a quality JPEG) but contain exact pixel values with zero quality loss. BMP is used internally by Windows and some industrial imaging systems. Converting BMP to PNG gives you the same lossless quality in a file typically 70–80% smaller.
The standard for professional photography, print production and document scanning. TIFF supports lossless and lossy compression, multiple layers, 16-bit and 32-bit colour depths, and CMYK colour space. Scanners, DSLRs and professional cameras output TIFF for maximum quality. File sizes are large — a 24MP RAW converted to TIFF can be 70 MB or more. Convert TIFF to PNG for lossless web use or to JPEG for web sharing.
Microsoft's icon format, containing multiple image resolutions in a single file. ICO is required for browser favicons (the small icon in the browser tab), Windows application icons and desktop shortcuts. A proper ICO file contains sizes from 16×16 to 256×256 pixels. Convert any image to ICO to generate a favicon — or use our dedicated Favicon Generator tool for full multi-size outputs with HTML snippet.
Scalable Vector Graphics — a text-based XML format for resolution-independent graphics. SVGs scale to any size without pixelation, making them ideal for logos, icons, illustrations and UI elements. Browser support is universal. Converting raster images (PNG, JPG) to SVG via this tool creates an embedded raster image inside SVG wrapper — true vector conversion requires tracing software. For SVG optimisation, use our SVG Optimiser tool.
An advanced JPEG variant with superior compression and features — supports lossless and lossy, transparency, and multiple bit depths. JPEG 2000 is used in digital cinema, medical imaging (DICOM) and archival contexts. Browser support is Safari-only. For web images, AVIF and JPEG XL have superseded JPEG 2000 with better compression and broader support. Convert JP2 files to JPG or PNG for compatibility.
Everything in this free image format converter
Built for web developers, photographers and designers who need to convert image formats without uploading to a cloud service, hitting file limits or receiving watermarked output.
How to convert an image format online — step by step
How this image format converter compares
Most free image converters either limit file sizes, add watermarks on the free tier, upload your images to their servers, or exclude modern formats like AVIF. Here is an honest comparison of the features that matter.
| Feature | LazyTools ✦ | iLoveIMG | Squoosh | Convertio |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PNG, JPG, WebP conversion | ✔ Yes | ✔ Yes | ✔ Yes | ✔ Yes |
| AVIF output support | ✔ Yes | ✘ No | ✔ Yes | ✔ Yes (paid) |
| GIF, BMP, TIFF, ICO | ✔ All four | ✔ Yes | ✘ Limited | ✔ Yes |
| Batch conversion | ✔ Free, unlimited | ✔ Free (limit 30) | ✘ Single file only | ✔ Paid plan |
| Custom background for PNG→JPG transparency | ✔ Yes — any colour | ✘ No (black fill) | ✘ No | ✘ No |
| Quality slider for lossy formats | ✔ Yes | ✘ No | ✔ Yes | ✘ No |
| Live before/after preview with file sizes | ✔ Yes | ✘ No | ✔ Yes | ✘ No |
| Strip EXIF metadata option | ✔ Yes | ✘ No | ✘ No | ✘ No |
| No watermark on free output | ✔ Never | ✔ Yes | ✔ Yes | ✘ Free adds watermark |
| 100% client-side — no image upload | ✔ Always | ✘ Uploads to server | ✔ Yes (WebAssembly) | ✘ Uploads to server |
| No account required | ✔ Yes | ✔ Yes | ✔ Yes | ✔ Yes (free tier) |
The Complete Guide to Image Formats — PNG, JPG, WebP, AVIF and Beyond
Every image on the web exists in a specific format — a container that defines how pixel data is compressed, what features the file supports, and which software can open it. Choosing the right image format is one of the highest-impact decisions in web performance, digital photography and graphic design. The wrong choice means bloated file sizes, compatibility failures or quality loss. The right choice means fast-loading pages, sharp graphics and future-proof archives.
Why image format conversion matters in 2025
The proliferation of devices and platforms has created a fragmented image landscape. iPhones shoot HEIC. Professional cameras output RAW or TIFF. Social media platforms expect JPG or PNG. Web developers want WebP or AVIF. Design tools work with PNG and SVG. Bridging these worlds requires converting image formats regularly.
Beyond compatibility, conversion optimises file size. A high-resolution JPEG photograph converted to WebP at the same visual quality is typically 25–34% smaller. The same photograph in AVIF can be 40–50% smaller. At scale — a website with hundreds of images — this is the difference between a 2-second page load and a 4-second one. Google's Core Web Vitals score rewards image optimisation directly.
JPEG and PNG — the enduring classics
JPEG has been the dominant photograph format since 1992. Its lossy compression algorithm (the Discrete Cosine Transform, or DCT) reduces file sizes dramatically by discarding visual information the human eye is least likely to notice. At 85–92% quality, JPEG images are visually indistinguishable from their originals while being 5–15× smaller. The critical limitation is transparency — JPEG has no alpha channel, so transparent pixels become solid when exported.
PNG was designed to replace GIF in 1996 and to provide a lossless alternative to JPEG. Lossless compression means every pixel is stored exactly — no quality degradation, no artefacts. PNG shines for logos, screenshots, UI mockups and any image with sharp edges, flat colours or text. Converting a photograph to PNG produces a correct but extremely large file — a 20MP photograph can be 60 MB as a lossless PNG versus 5 MB as a JPEG. PNG's transparency support (8-bit alpha channel) makes it indispensable for graphics that sit on varied backgrounds.
WebP — the reliable modern standard
Google launched WebP in 2010 as a single format to replace both JPEG and PNG. After years of limited browser support, WebP achieved near-universal support by 2022. It provides 25–34% smaller lossy files than JPEG and 26% smaller lossless files than PNG. Transparency and animation are both supported.
WebP is the safest modern format choice for web developers in 2025. Its support across all browsers — including older versions — means no fallback is needed in most cases. Converting your site's JPG images to WebP is one of the quickest wins in web performance. Most image CDNs (Cloudflare, Cloudinary, Imgix) serve WebP automatically to browsers that support it.
AVIF — the format of choice for new projects
AVIF (AV1 Image File Format) is based on the AV1 video codec developed by the Alliance for Open Media. Its compression is significantly better than WebP — typically 20–30% smaller files at the same visual quality. Netflix's research showed 50% smaller files than JPEG at equivalent perceptual quality. A 600-image study by Ctrl.blog confirmed similar results across varied photographic content.
Full browser support arrived in 2024 when Safari added AVIF support. All major browsers — Chrome, Firefox, Edge and Safari — now handle AVIF natively. WordPress 6.5 introduced AVIF support, and Shopify serves AVIF automatically to supported browsers. For new web projects, AVIF should be the primary format with WebP as a fallback using the <picture> element.
AVIF's one disadvantage is encoding speed — it is slower to encode than WebP or JPEG. For server-side batch conversion of large image libraries, this matters. For browser-based single-file conversion, the difference is imperceptible.
JPEG XL — the next decade's archival format
JPEG XL (JXL) may be the most technically impressive image format ever standardised. Developed by the Joint Photographic Experts Group and Cloudinary, it achieves 35–55% smaller files than JPEG at equivalent quality — and 20% smaller than AVIF at high quality settings (per a 40,000-image Cloudinary study). Its feature set surpasses every other format: HDR, 32-bit colour, CMYK, multiple layers, animation, progressive decoding and — uniquely — lossless JPEG transcoding.
The lossless transcoding capability deserves special attention. Existing JPEG files can be converted to JXL and reduced by ~20% in size with zero quality loss — and converted back to identical JPEG pixels later. No other format offers this property. For photographic archives, JXL enables a unique workflow: convert your JPEG collection to JXL losslessly, reduce storage by 20%, and retain the ability to recover the original JPEG bit-for-bit if needed.
Browser support is advancing rapidly. Safari shipped JXL in 2022. Chrome added JPEG XL decoding to Chromium in January 2026. Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, GIMP, Affinity and most professional imaging tools now read and write JXL. Practical deployment for archiving and professional photography workflows is ready today. Web delivery will follow as Chrome support reaches stable users.
HEIC — iPhone photos and why they need conversion
Apple adopted HEIC as the default iPhone capture format in iOS 11 (2017). The format delivers twice the compression efficiency of JPEG — a 12MP iPhone photo that would be 4 MB as JPEG is typically under 2 MB as HEIC. The quality improvement at equivalent file sizes is also measurable: HEIC supports 10-bit colour depth versus JPEG's 8-bit, producing smoother gradients and better detail retention in highlights and shadows.
The problem is web and cross-platform compatibility. Chrome, Firefox and Edge do not support HEIC natively due to HEVC licensing costs. Windows requires a paid codec from the Microsoft Store. Android support is device-dependent. The practical consequence: any HEIC photo shared outside Apple's ecosystem needs conversion. Converting HEIC to JPG gives maximum compatibility; converting to WebP or AVIF gives compatibility plus smaller file sizes than the original JPEG alternative.
GIF, BMP and TIFF — when to use legacy formats
GIF remains relevant for simple animations — social media reaction images, loading indicators and basic visual demonstrations — despite its 256-colour limitation. For new animations, WebP provides identical browser support with full colour and 50–70% smaller files. Convert existing GIF animations to WebP to modernise them without losing playback support.
BMP (Windows Bitmap) is the uncompressed baseline format — raw pixel data with no compression. Use BMP only when downstream software requires it, such as certain Windows APIs or industrial imaging systems. Converting BMP to PNG gives the same lossless quality in a file 70–80% smaller. Converting BMP to JPEG reduces size by 95%+ with minimal visual impact.
TIFF is the professional standard for print, medical imaging and archival photography. Scanners, DSLRs and professional camera workflows output TIFF to preserve maximum detail. Converting TIFF to PNG for web delivery preserves lossless quality in a web-compatible format. Converting to JPEG for web sharing sacrifices some quality for dramatically smaller file sizes.
Choosing the right format — a decision guide
Web photographs should use AVIF with a WebP fallback via the <picture> element. Logos and UI graphics with transparency work best as SVG (if vector) or PNG (if raster). Animated content is most efficiently delivered as animated WebP or MP4 video. Professional archiving calls for JPEG XL or TIFF. Maximum compatibility for email and social media favours plain JPEG. Finally, iPhone photos in HEIC need converting to JPG before sharing across platforms.
Transparency and the PNG to JPG conversion problem
The most common source of confusion in image conversion is transparency. PNG, WebP, AVIF and GIF support transparency (alpha channel). JPEG, BMP and ICO do not. When converting a transparent PNG to JPG, the transparent pixels must be filled with a solid colour — if not specified, most tools default to black, which looks incorrect for any image designed to sit on a white or coloured background.
Always set the background colour to match the destination before converting. A website with a white background needs white (#ffffff). Dark-mode interfaces need the dark background colour, and printed documents need the paper colour. This tool lets you choose any background colour from a colour picker before conversion — ensuring your converted JPG looks correct wherever it is used.