JPG to PNG
Convert JPG to PNG when a program asks for PNG, or when a picture is about to be edited and saved many times.
How the files you choose are handled is set out in the privacy policy.
How to convert JPG to PNG
- Tap Choose JPG files and select one or more files.
- There is no quality setting to choose: a PNG always stores the picture exactly.
- Press Convert to PNG, then save the picture, or all of them as one ZIP.
What converting JPG to PNG does
The JPG is opened and every pixel is written into a PNG exactly as it appears. From that point on, nothing more is lost, no matter how many times the PNG is opened and saved.
It is worth being clear about what it does not do. A JPG has already given up some fine detail to be small. Converting to PNG keeps what is there. It cannot bring back what the JPG discarded, so the picture will not look sharper.
Good reasons to do it
- Repeated editing. Each save of a JPG loses a little more. Convert once to PNG, do all the editing on the PNG, and export a JPG at the end.
- A program or printer that asks for PNG. Some design tools, game engines, sticker and print-on-demand services accept only PNG.
- Adding text or graphics. Sharp lettering placed on a photo stays crisp in a PNG and gets hazy edges in a JPG.
- Preparing for a transparent background. Transparency needs PNG. The background still has to be removed in an image editor afterwards.
Expect a bigger file
| Picture | As JPG | As PNG |
|---|---|---|
| Phone photo, 12 megapixels | 3 to 5 MB | 15 to 25 MB |
| Photo at 1920 × 1080 | 300 to 600 KB | 2 to 4 MB |
| Scanned form, mostly white | 200 KB | 300 to 600 KB |
That is normal. PNG compresses without loss, and photographs are full of small variations that cannot be packed tightly without loss. If the PNG is too large, choose a smaller size in pixels before converting.
Transparency does not appear by itself
A common hope is that saving as PNG makes the background transparent. It does not. The white or coloured background of the JPG is part of the picture and is copied like everything else. PNG only makes transparency possible.
If size is what matters
For sharing, uploading and web pages, JPG is nearly always the better format for a photo, and compress image will make it smaller still. Going the other way is covered by PNG to JPG.
Questions
Does converting JPG to PNG improve quality?
No. It preserves the picture as it is and prevents further loss. Detail the JPG already discarded cannot be restored.
Will the background become transparent?
No. PNG can hold transparency, but the background has to be removed in an image editor.
Why is the PNG so much larger?
PNG keeps every pixel exactly, and photos do not pack tightly that way. Several times the size of the JPG is normal.
Is anything lost in the conversion?
No pixels are changed. Camera details stored in the JPG, such as date and location, are not copied.
Can I convert JPEG and JFIF files too?
Yes. JPG, JPEG and JFIF are the same format under different endings.