WEBP — Modern Web Image Format
WEBP is an image format released by Google in 2010, engineered for the web. It supports lossy and lossless compression, transparency and animation in a single format — and compresses meaningfully better than both JPG and PNG.
Since 2020 every major browser supports WEBP, and it's now often what you get when you save an image from a website.
What WEBP files are used for
- Website images — smaller files mean faster pages and better Core Web Vitals
- Replacing JPG for photos (~25–35% smaller) and PNG for graphics (often 50–80% smaller)
- Transparent images at sizes PNG can't match
Advantages
- Best-in-class compression among universally supported formats
- One format covers photos, graphics, transparency and animation
- Supported by every modern browser and CDN
Limitations
- Some desktop applications, older photo viewers and upload forms still reject it
- Not the native format of any camera — it's a delivery format, not a capture format
- For maximum-compatibility sharing, JPG and PNG remain safer
How to open a WEBP file
Any modern browser opens WEBP — drag the file into a browser window. If a desktop app refuses it, convert it: WEBP to JPG for photos, or WEBP to PNG when it has transparency.