What is WebP? The Modern Image Format Explained

Published: March 2025 • 4 min read

What is WebP?

WebP is an image format developed by Google in 2010 that provides superior compression for images on the web. It supports both lossy and lossless compression, as well as transparency (alpha channel) and animation.

Key Benefits

• 25-34% smaller than JPG at equivalent quality
• 26% smaller than PNG for lossless images
• Transparency support (like PNG but much smaller)
• Animation support (like GIF but much smaller and better quality)
• Widely supported in all modern browsers

Browser Support (2025)

WebP is supported by all major browsers:

• ✅ Chrome (since 2014)
• ✅ Firefox (since 2019)
• ✅ Edge (since 2018)
• ✅ Safari (since 2020, macOS Big Sur / iOS 14)
• ✅ Opera (since 2013)

As of 2025, over 97% of web users can view WebP images.

How to Use WebP on Your Website

The recommended approach uses the HTML <picture> element for backward compatibility:

<picture>
  <source srcset="image.webp" type="image/webp">
  <img src="image.jpg" alt="Description">
</picture>

This serves WebP to browsers that support it and falls back to JPG for older browsers.

WebP vs JPG vs PNG

• WebP vs JPG: 25-34% smaller with equivalent quality. WebP also supports transparency.
• WebP vs PNG: 26% smaller for lossless. Both support transparency, but WebP is much more efficient.
• WebP vs GIF: WebP animations are much smaller and support 24-bit color (vs GIF's 256 colors).

Convert to WebP Now

Ready to speed up your website? Use our free WebP Converter to convert your images instantly in your browser.