Pick the Right Image Format & Convert Free

JPG, PNG, WebP, HEIC, AVIF — every format is great at one thing and terrible at another. Convert between them all and learn which one to pick for the web, for print, for transparency, for size.

Drop your file here to start

Drag & drop one or more files — or tap to choose. Everything is processed on your device.

You can also press Ctrl/⌘+V to paste an image

Choose files Continue to Image Converter without a file Press Enter or Space to choose a file

How It Works

Upload

Any common image

Choose Format

JPG / PNG / WebP

Download

Right format, right size

Direct Conversion Routes

JPG → PNG

Add transparency support

PNG → JPG

Shrink screenshots 5–10×

JPG → WebP

30% smaller for the web

PNG → WebP

Keep transparency, smaller file

WebP → JPG

Universal compatibility

WebP → PNG

For older apps

Anything → JPG

From HEIC, AVIF, BMP, etc.

Anything → PNG

Lossless archive format

Anything → WebP

Fastest web format

Image Format Decision Guide

Stop converting images randomly. The format you choose decides how big your file is, whether it has transparency, how it compresses, which devices can open it, and whether Google considers your page fast or slow. Here's the short, opinionated guide most blogs won't give you.

Quick Decision Table

Use case	Best format	Fallback
Blog / website photo	WebP	JPG 80%
Logo, icon, badge	PNG (or SVG)	WebP lossless
Screenshot with text	PNG	WebP lossless
Product photo (ecommerce)	WebP	JPG 90%
Email attachment	JPG	PNG
Print at 300 DPI	JPG 100% or PNG	TIFF
Image with transparency	PNG or WebP	—
iPhone photo for the web	HEIC → WebP	HEIC → JPG

JPEG / JPG

The workhorse of the internet since 1992. Lossy compression, no transparency, universal support. Best for photographs where small file size matters more than pixel-perfect detail. Don't use for logos, screenshots or anything with sharp text — JPG creates ugly halos around hard edges.

PNG

Lossless. Supports transparency. Perfect for graphics, logos, icons, UI mockups, screenshots, and anything that needs to be redrawn perfectly. Downside: file sizes are 5–10× larger than JPG for the same photograph. Don't use for photos unless you really need lossless quality.

WebP

Google's modern format. Lossy or lossless. Supports transparency and animation. About 25–35% smaller than equivalent JPG, and ~26% smaller than equivalent PNG. Supported by every modern browser since 2020 (Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari 14+). The right default for the web in 2026.

HEIC / HEIF

Apple's high-efficiency format. Smaller than JPG, but unsupported by most non-Apple software. If you sent an iPhone photo to a Windows user and they couldn't open it, this is why. Convert HEIC → JPG or HEIC → WebP before sharing.

AVIF

The new heavyweight champion of compression — about 50% smaller than JPG, 20% smaller than WebP. Supported by Chrome, Firefox and Safari 16+. Use AVIF for hero images on cutting-edge sites; keep WebP as the fallback.

After Converting

Once your file is the right format, run it through the image compressor for the smallest possible size, resize to display dimensions, or crop for composition.

Frequently Asked Questions

JPG, PNG or WebP — which one should I actually use?

Will converting JPG to PNG make it sharper?

Why is my converted PNG file huge?

Can I lose transparency when converting?

Does ImageGates support HEIC, AVIF or BMP?

Is conversion lossy?

Show all 6 questions

Choosing the right image format

You have a file in one format and a destination that wants another, and you need to know which choice keeps the most quality.

Image formats differ in three ways that matter: whether they discard data to save space, whether they support transparency, and how widely they are supported. JPEG throws away detail to stay small and has no transparency. PNG keeps every pixel exactly and supports transparency, at the cost of size. WebP does both, lossy or lossless, in fewer bytes than either, but is refused by some older software. This converter re-encodes your file locally so you can move between them without uploading anything.

When people use this tool

Meeting an upload requirement

Portals frequently accept only JPEG or PNG, so a WebP or HEIC file from a phone has to be converted first.

Preparing images for the web

Converting photographs to WebP typically cuts weight by a quarter compared with the JPEG equivalent.

Keeping transparency

Logos and cut-out products must be PNG or WebP; saving them as JPEG fills the transparent area with white.

Opening files in older software

Design tools and printers that predate WebP still expect JPEG or PNG input.

Step-by-step

1 Add the source file. Drop in any image your browser can decode, including PNG, JPG and WebP.
2 Pick the destination format. Choose based on the destination rather than habit: transparency means PNG or WebP, photographs mean JPEG or WebP.
3 Convert. The image is decoded and re-encoded in the page, with no upload and no queue.
4 Download the new file. The converted copy keeps your original file name with the new extension.

Formats, limits and output

Supported inputs	JPG, JPEG, PNG, WebP, GIF still frames, BMP, and HEIC where the browser can decode it.
Supported outputs	JPEG, PNG and WebP.
Transparency	Preserved into PNG and WebP; flattened onto white when the target is JPEG.
Batch	Several files can be converted in one session.

Practical tips

• Converting a JPEG to PNG does not restore lost detail; it only stops further loss from that point on.
• For photographs, WebP at a moderate quality usually beats JPEG at the same file size.
• Animated files convert as a single still frame, so use a dedicated animation tool if motion matters.
• Check the destination's accepted extensions list before converting a whole folder.