PNG (Portable Network Graphics)

.png · image/png · 1996 · PNG Development Group (W3C)

Lossless with full transparency. The standard for screenshots, logos and UI graphics. Below is what PNG is best at, where it falls short, and how it compares — plus free, in-browser tools to convert PNG to and from other formats, with nothing uploaded.

PNG is a lossless format with full alpha transparency, designed in 1996 as the patent-free successor to GIF. It compresses flat colors, text and sharp edges perfectly, which makes it the standard for screenshots, logos, icons and UI graphics. The trade-off is size: a photo saved as PNG is often 5–10× larger than the same photo as JPEG. EditItAll optimizes PNGs losslessly, and can optionally reduce the color palette for much bigger savings.

Compression

Lossless

Transparency

Yes

Animation

No

Browser display

All browsers

Strengths & limitations

Strengths

  • Pixel-perfect lossless compression
  • Full 8-bit alpha transparency
  • Ideal for text, screenshots, logos and flat design

Limitations

  • Very large files for photographs
  • No animation support
  • No native HDR or wide-gamut signaling in practice

Best used for

Tools for PNG

Compress PNGPNG → WebPPNG → AVIFPNG → JPEG XLPNG → JPEGPNG → GIFPNG → ICOPNG → TIFFPNG → BMPPNG → TGAPNG → QOIHEIC → PNGWebP → PNGAVIF → PNGJPEG XL → PNGJPEG → PNGGIF → PNGSVG → PNGICO → PNGTIFF → PNGBMP → PNGPSD → PNGTGA → PNGEXR → PNGQOI → PNGCR2 → PNGNEF → PNGARW → PNGDNG → PNG

Frequently asked questions

Is PNG lossy or lossless?+

PNG is lossless: it preserves every pixel exactly, with no quality loss.

Does PNG support transparency?+

Yes — PNG has an alpha channel, so it can store transparent areas. It is a still-image format (no animation).

Can browsers open PNG files directly?+

Yes — every mainstream browser displays PNG natively.

How do I open or convert a PNG file for free?+

Drop your PNG file into the EditItAll converter and choose an output format — it decodes and re-encodes entirely in your browser, with nothing uploaded, no account and no watermark.