Best Image Format for Website Speed

Use AVIF where supported, WebP as a fallback, JPG for universal compatibility. Serve images with the HTML picture element to let browsers pick the best supported format automatically.

This approach gives every visitor the smallest file their browser can handle, without breaking anything for older browsers.

For a typical photograph, here's how the formats compare (smallest to largest):

The smallest files and best quality per byte of any raster format. AVIF images are typically 30–50% smaller than equivalent JPG files.

• → Browser support — Chrome 85+, Firefox 93+, Safari 16+. Covers most modern browsers.
• → Best for — Hero images, product photos, any image where file size savings matter most.
• → Tradeoff — Encoding is slower than JPG or WebP. Not supported in older browsers.

Learn more about the AVIF format.

25–35% smaller than JPG with similar visual quality. WebP has broader browser support than AVIF and is a safe default for most modern websites.

• → Browser support — All modern browsers, including Safari 14+. Over 97% global coverage.
• → Best for — General website images when you want smaller files without compatibility concerns.
• → Supports transparency — Unlike JPG, WebP handles alpha channels, so it can replace both JPG and PNG in many cases.

Learn more about the WebP format.

Universal support and good compression for photos. JPG works everywhere — every browser, every device, every image editor. Use it as your fallback format.

• → Quality sweet spot — Quality 75–85 gives the best balance between file size and visual quality for most photos.
• → Best for — Fallback images, email-safe photos, and situations where broad compatibility matters more than file size.
• × No transparency — Cannot handle transparent areas. Use WebP or PNG instead.

Learn more about the JPG format.

Use PNG only when you need transparency or pixel-perfect graphics. It's not efficient for photographs — PNG photo files are typically 5–10x larger than JPG.

• → Best for — Logos, icons, screenshots, and graphics with text or sharp edges.
• → Full transparency — Supports alpha channel with 256 levels of opacity per pixel.
• × Large files for photos — Not suitable for photographic content if speed matters.

Learn more about the PNG format.

Serve multiple formats using the HTML picture element. The browser picks the first format it supports:

Generate AVIF and WebP versions of your images, and keep JPG as the fallback. Use our converter to batch-create all three versions at once.

• → AVIF-capable browsers — get the smallest files
• → WebP-capable browsers — get a solid size reduction
• → Older browsers — still get a working JPG image