Images
JPG vs PNG: Which Format Should You Save Your Image As?
June 8, 2026 · 4 min read
Picking the wrong format means blurry logos or bloated photos. Here's the one-minute rule that gets it right every time.
JPG and PNG both display images in a browser — but they work completely differently under the hood, and using the wrong one is one of the most common mistakes people make when working with images. A logo saved as JPG looks blurry. A photograph saved as PNG is five times larger than it needs to be.
The core difference
JPG uses lossy compression: it throws away fine detail to make files smaller. This is ideal for photographs, where the eye forgives minor imperfections in smooth tones and gradients. It's terrible for sharp lines, text, and flat colours — which is exactly what logos and screenshots contain.
PNG uses lossless compression: every pixel is stored exactly. This keeps logos, icons, and screenshots perfectly crisp. But it can't be as aggressive about file size, which is why PNG photos are enormous.
The simple rule
- Photo, illustration with gradients, or anything that looks like a real scene → JPG.
- Logo, icon, screenshot, text, or anything with sharp edges → PNG.
- Needs a transparent background → PNG (JPG doesn't support transparency).
- Going on a website and want the best of both → convert to WebP.
What happens when you get it wrong
Save a logo or screenshot as JPG and you'll see muddy edges around text and blocks of colour — JPG's compression artefacts are most visible exactly where colour changes sharply. Save a photograph as PNG and you'll wait far longer than necessary for it to upload or load, and you'll fill up storage faster.
When to convert
If you've received an image in the wrong format — a logo as JPG, a photo as PNG — converting is straightforward and takes a few seconds. Converting a JPG logo to PNG won't repair the existing artefacts, but it will stop them getting worse if you need to re-save it. Converting a PNG photo to JPG will dramatically reduce the file size.
The format you choose has a bigger impact on quality and file size than almost any other setting. Get this right and you'll have sharper images, smaller files, and fewer headaches when uploading to websites or sharing by email.