Every image you save has to pick a format, and the three most common — PNG, JPG, and WebP — aren't interchangeable. They make different trade-offs between file size, quality, and what they can represent, and picking correctly actually matters for load times and image quality.
JPG: best for photos, not for anything with sharp edges
JPG uses lossy compression tuned for photographic images — smooth color gradients, lots of detail, no hard edges. It has no transparency support. For a photo, JPG usually produces the smallest reasonable file size at acceptable quality. For a screenshot, logo, or anything with text or flat colors, JPG's compression tends to introduce visible artifacts around sharp edges — a format mismatch, not a settings problem.
PNG: lossless, with transparency
PNG compresses without losing any image data, and supports a full alpha (transparency) channel. That makes it the right choice for logos, icons, screenshots, and anything that needs a transparent background. The cost is file size — a PNG of a complex photo is typically much larger than the equivalent JPG, because lossless compression can only do so much with photographic detail.
WebP: usually the best of both, when it's supported
WebP supports both lossy and lossless compression, plus transparency, and generally produces smaller files than PNG or JPG at comparable visual quality. Every major modern browser supports it now, which is why sites increasingly serve WebP by default. The main reason to still keep PNG or JPG around is compatibility with older tools, email clients, or software that hasn't added WebP support.
A quick rule of thumb
- Photo, no transparency needed → JPG (or WebP if file size matters)
- Logo, icon, or anything needing transparency → PNG (or WebP if supported)
- Building for the web and want the smallest file → WebP, with a JPG/PNG fallback if you need broad compatibility
Convert between any of them
Plexto has dedicated converters for every direction — PNG to WebP, WebP to JPG, JPG to PNG, and more — all running in your browser with no upload.