WebP

Overview

WebP is an open image format designed for the web. It provides lossy and lossless compression, full alpha transparency, and animated frames, which makes it a compact alternative to JPEG, PNG, and GIF in modern browsers.

Typical use cases

• Web images
• Animated web graphics
• Photos with transparency
• Responsive image pipelines

Advantages

• Lossy and lossless modes in one format
• Transparency and animation support
• Smaller web files than JPEG or PNG in many cases

Disadvantages

• Older browsers require fallbacks
• Encoding can be slower than JPEG for photos
• Some desktop tools lag in support

How to open or use it

Open WebP files in modern browsers, image viewers, and editors. Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari render WebP, and tools like Photoshop, GIMP, and web services convert it as needed.