PNG vs JPG: which is better?

Neither is better in general. JPG is better for photos because it keeps them small and natural looking, and every device opens it. PNG is better for screenshots, logos, text and graphics because it is lossless and supports transparency. Choose by what the picture contains, not by which format sounds higher quality.

Is PNG higher quality than JPG?

PNG is lossless, so it stores exactly the pixels you give it, while JPG removes some fine detail. At a high quality setting a JPG photo looks the same as a PNG to most people. The real difference shows on text and sharp edges, where JPG adds blur and noise and PNG stays clean.

Why is my PNG file so large?

PNG compresses images by finding repeated patterns, and photos have very few of them because of grain and fine texture. A photo saved as PNG can easily be several times the size of the same photo as JPG. Convert photos to JPG, or use a PNG compressor if you need to keep the PNG format.

Does converting PNG to JPG lose quality?

Yes, a little, because JPG is lossy. At a quality of around 90%, the change is very hard to see on photos. Text and sharp graphics suffer more, and transparent areas turn white. Keep the original PNG if you might need the full quality or the transparency later.

Should I save screenshots as PNG or JPG?

Save screenshots as PNG. Screens show flat colors and sharp text, which PNG compresses well and keeps perfectly sharp. A JPG screenshot often ends up blurry around the letters and is not always smaller. Use JPG only when a screenshot is mostly a photo, such as a frame from a video.

PNG vs JPG: Differences and Which One to Use

PNG vs JPG comes down to how each format compresses a picture: JPG throws away fine detail to make photos small, while PNG keeps every pixel exactly and supports transparent backgrounds. Use JPG for photos and PNG for screenshots, logos, text and anything with transparency.

This guide stays on these two formats only. If you also want to weigh WebP, our WebP vs PNG vs JPG comparison covers all three.

PNG vs JPG at a glance

Feature	JPG	PNG
Compression	Lossy: removes detail you are unlikely to notice	Lossless: every pixel comes back exactly
Transparency	None	Full alpha channel with soft edges
Color depth	8 bits per channel in everyday files	Up to 16 bits per channel, or a small palette of up to 256 colors
Photos	Small files that look natural	Often several times larger than the JPG
Screenshots and text	Fuzzy halos around letters and lines	Sharp edges, often small files
Saving again after edits	Loses a little more quality each time	No loss, no matter how often you save
Print color (CMYK)	Possible from design software	RGB only
Typical source	Cameras, phones in compatible mode, scanners	Screenshots, design apps, logos and icons

PNG to JPG

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How JPG and PNG compress an image

Both formats make files smaller, but they take opposite routes. That one difference explains almost every result you see in practice.

JPG: lossy compression

JPG, short for JPEG, splits the picture into small blocks of 8 by 8 pixels. It then keeps the broad shapes and smooth color changes in each block and discards the tiniest variations, which your eye barely registers in a photo.

JPG also stores color at a lower resolution than brightness, a trick called chroma subsampling. People notice changes in brightness far more than changes in color, so photos still look right. Text and thin colored lines, however, pick up blurry edges and faint blocky noise known as compression artifacts.

The quality setting decides how much gets thrown away. A high setting keeps more detail and gives a bigger file; a low one saves space and shows more artifacts.

PNG: lossless compression

PNG never discards anything. It first runs each row of pixels through a filter that predicts every pixel from its neighbors, then packs the result with DEFLATE, the same family of compression used in ZIP files.

That approach works brilliantly when an image repeats itself: flat backgrounds, solid colors, lines of text. It works poorly on photos, where grain and fine texture make almost every pixel different from the one next to it. The format is maintained by the W3C, and the PNG specification (third edition, 2025) also added official support for animation, HDR and Exif metadata.

Transparency: the one thing JPG cannot do

A PNG can store an alpha channel, a fourth value for every pixel that says how see through it is. That allows fully transparent backgrounds and also partial transparency, so the soft edge of a logo or a strand of hair blends into whatever sits behind it.

JPG has no alpha channel at all. When you convert a transparent PNG to JPG, the empty areas have to become a solid color, and almost every converter, FileKiwi included, fills them with white.

That matters for logos on colored websites, stickers, product cutouts and app icons. Keep those as PNG. If the image will only ever sit on a white page or be printed on white paper, a JPG works fine.

Screenshots vs photos: which format wins

Screenshots, diagrams and text

A screenshot of an email or a spreadsheet is mostly large areas of one color with sharp text on top. PNG compresses that kind of image very well and keeps every letter sharp. Saved as JPG, the same screenshot often ends up bigger, and the text gets a gray haze around each character.

That is why iPhone, Mac and the Windows Snipping Tool save screenshots as PNG by default. Android phones mostly do too, although some brands let you switch to JPG in the screenshot settings.

Photos

A photo of a street or a face contains sensor noise, texture and gradual light changes. PNG cannot find repeating patterns, so the file stays heavy, often several times the size of a good JPG that looks the same on screen.

You can test this on your own files. Save one photo and one screenshot in both formats, then compare the sizes in File Explorer (right click, Properties) or in Finder (Get Info). The photo will be far smaller as JPG, and the screenshot usually smaller as PNG.

Mixed images

A meme, a social media graphic or a photo with a caption sits in between. If the photo part is large, a JPG at high quality is usually the better trade. If the text is small and needs to stay razor sharp, or the image has transparency, pick PNG.

PNG or JPG for printing

For printing, resolution matters far more than the format. A small image stays small and blurry on paper whether it is a PNG or a JPG, so check that the pixel dimensions fit the print size first.

Photo prints and kiosks: send JPG at the highest quality setting. It is what these services expect, and the slight compression is invisible on paper.
Flyers and posters with text: a PNG keeps lettering sharp, but many print shops prefer a PDF. Ask before you export.
Professional offset printing: printers work in CMYK color. JPG can carry CMYK data and PNG cannot, so a designer will usually deliver PDF, TIFF or a CMYK JPG instead.
Transparency on paper: paper is not transparent, so a transparent PNG prints on white.

When to convert PNG to JPG, and when not to

Convert PNG to JPG when:

An upload form, job portal or exam site accepts JPG only.
A photo was saved as PNG by an editing app and is now far too large to email.
You are posting many photos to a website and want lighter pages.
A photo printer or kiosk refuses PNG files.

Keep the PNG when:

The image has a transparent background you need.
It is a screenshot, chart or diagram full of small text.
You will keep editing it. Make a JPG copy at the very end and keep the PNG as the master.

Going the other way, from JPG to PNG, never repairs a photo. Detail that JPG already removed stays gone, and the PNG copy only takes more space. The exception is when you need a file you can edit and save many times without further loss, which the JPG to PNG converter covers.

How to convert PNG to JPG on any device

With FileKiwi, on any device

Open the PNG to JPG converter in any modern browser.
Add one or many PNG files, up to 50 MB each.
Leave the quality slider at the default 92% or lower it for smaller files.
Download each JPG, or all of them together as a ZIP.

The conversion itself runs in your browser. Transparent areas are filled with white, and metadata is not copied into the result. A copy of each file you add is kept privately on our server for 30 days, and the JPG results are not stored.

Windows 11

Right click the PNG and choose Open with > Paint.
Choose File > Save as > JPEG picture.
Pick a folder, type a name and click Save.

Mac

Open the PNG in Preview.
Choose File > Export.
Set Format to JPEG, move the Quality slider if you want, and click Save.

iPhone and Android

The Photos app on iPhone and the gallery apps on Android do not offer a format picker when you save. A browser converter is the most direct route on a phone. On iPhone, the Shortcuts app also has a Convert Image action if you like building your own shortcuts.

If the JPG is still too heavy for a form, shrink it further with Compress JPG, which shows the size before and after.

Which format to pick

Photo you share, upload or print: JPG.
Screenshot, chart, diagram or anything with small text: PNG.
Logo, icon or cutout with a transparent background: PNG.
Image you will edit again and again: PNG as the working copy, JPG as the final export.
Form that says JPG only: convert, check the result at full size, and keep your original.

When in doubt, ask what is in the picture. Real world scenes belong in JPG; flat colors, text and transparency belong in PNG.

PNG vs JPG: What Is the Difference and Which Is Better?