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Info

Trying to decide whether to save your image as a .jpg or .png? See below to find the best option for you!

JPEG Files

Infonote

JPG and JPEG files are the same. Windows used to require 3 character extensions.

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  • Online photos or images without transparent elements

Pros:

  • Most universally recognized — compatible with most browsers, software, and apps

  • Loads faster on websites

  • Great for photographs

  • Usually provides more accurate colors

  • Smaller file size while still retaining detail

Cons:

  • Lossy file type instead of lossless file type, so a loss in quality can occur each time it is opened/saved

  • Doesn’t support transparent backgrounds

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  • Web graphics with sharp edges, lots of figures, and transparent elements

Pros:

  • Supports transparent backgrounds

  • Great for simple graphics with fewer colors than a photo

  • Sometimes, files can be smaller than a jpg if it is a graphic element with only a few solid colors

  • Can be edited/saved unlimited times without losing any quality since they use less compression

Cons:

  • Files are bigger since they retain a lot more information

  • Slower loading times when viewing online

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  • Web graphics — icons, logos, illustrations, and infographics

Pros:

  • Always maintain their resolution — no matter how large or small you make them

  • Basic SVG files are often smaller than raster most other images.

  • Screen readers can scan any words contained in SVG images

Cons:

  • Lack of pixels makes displaying high-quality digital photos difficult

    • JPGs are generally better for detailed photographs

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  • Extremely Large Prints (e.g. billboards)

  • Storing high-quality photographs and high-resolution scans locally on your machine

  • Container file to store multiple lower quality jpg files within the same tiff file

Pros:

  • Similar to a PNG, they have lossless compression and don’t lose quality when edited/saved

  • Support transparent backgrounds in images/graphics

  • Store extra information such as additional layers, which can be opened in Photoshop

Cons:

  • Poor choice for websites; can slow a website’s loading speed

    • Lighter file formats, like JPG, might be more useful for online images

  • Detail and resolution lead to quite large files

  • Take up more storage space

  • Their size makes them difficult to share

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