Guides / Image compression

How to Compress Images for the Web

Large images slow down web pages, use up mobile data and hurt search rankings. Here is how to make them smaller without making them look worse.

Why image size matters

Images are often the heaviest part of a web page. Smaller files load faster, which keeps visitors from leaving and helps your page perform better in search. A photo straight from a phone camera can be 3 to 10 MB. With the right settings it can fall below 300 KB and look almost identical on screen.

Choose the right format

Each format suits a different kind of image:

• JPEG works well for photos with smooth color gradients. It does not support transparency.
• WebP usually gives smaller files than JPEG or PNG at similar quality, and supports transparency. Modern browsers all support it.
• PNG is lossless, so it suits screenshots, text and images with sharp edges. It produces larger files for photos.

Pick a quality setting

Quality settings from 70 to 85 are a good starting point for most photos. Lower values save more space but can add visible blur or blocky patches. Compress once, then compare the result at full size. If you can see artifacts, raise the quality a little.

Resize before you compress

Many images are far bigger than they need to be. If an image displays at 800 pixels wide on your page, there is no benefit to uploading a 4000-pixel version. Resizing first is often the biggest saving you can make.

Try it yourself

Our Image Compressor lets you convert, resize and compress JPEG, PNG and WebP files. It runs entirely in your browser, so your photos are never uploaded.