PNG vs JPG: What is the difference?
PNG (Portable Network Graphics) and JPG (also written JPEG) are the two most common image formats on the web, but they serve different purposes.
PNG uses lossless compression — every pixel is stored exactly. This makes PNG ideal for screenshots, logos, illustrations, and any image with sharp edges or text. The trade-off is file size: a PNG can be 5–10× larger than an equivalent JPG.
JPG uses lossy compression — it discards subtle colour information that the human eye rarely notices. The result is dramatically smaller files, which is why cameras and phones default to JPG for photos. A typical 12-megapixel photo saved as JPG at 85% quality is around 3–5 MB; the same photo as PNG would be 25–35 MB.
When should you convert PNG to JPG?
Convert PNG to JPG when you need to share or upload photos and file size matters. Common use cases include:
• Uploading product photos to an e-commerce site • Attaching images to emails • Sharing photos on social media • Reducing storage usage on your device • Meeting file-size limits on web forms
Keep PNG when your image contains transparency, sharp text overlaid on a photo, or when you need to preserve every pixel exactly — for example, when editing the same file multiple times.
How to convert PNG to JPG using PhotoTools
1. Open the Convert tool at the top of this page. 2. Drag and drop your PNG file onto the upload area, or click to browse. 3. Select JPG as the output format from the format selector. 4. Adjust the quality slider (80–90% is recommended for photos; 95% for high-fidelity output). 5. Click Convert, then download your JPG.
You can also upload multiple PNG files at once and convert them all in a single batch. Finished files can be downloaded individually or as a ZIP archive.
What quality setting should I use?
The quality setting controls how aggressively JPG compression discards image data. Higher values mean larger files with less compression artefacts.
• 95–100%: Near-lossless. Use for images that will be edited again or printed. File size is close to PNG. • 85–90%: High quality. Suitable for professional photography and product images. Artefacts are invisible. • 75–85%: Standard web quality. The sweet spot for most uses — good visual quality with files 60–80% smaller than the original PNG. • Below 70%: Visible artefacts may appear, especially around sharp edges. Suitable only for thumbnails or low-priority images.
Our converter defaults to 92%, which works well for the vast majority of use cases.
Does converting PNG to JPG lose quality?
Yes, but the loss is usually imperceptible. JPG compression works by averaging nearby pixel colours, which is why you get smaller files. At 85% quality or above, most people cannot detect any difference when viewing the image at normal size.
The one place where quality loss is more noticeable is in images with very sharp edges — text on a coloured background, QR codes, or logos. For those, stick with PNG.
Never re-save a JPG as JPG multiple times. Each re-save applies compression again, degrading quality cumulatively. Always keep the original PNG as your source file.