WEBP File Format (.webp)
A WebP file holds a still or animated image compressed with Google's WebP codec, built as a single format to undercut JPEG, PNG, and GIF on file size at comparable quality.
WEBP at a glance#
| Full name | WebP Image Format |
|---|---|
| File extension | .webp |
| Category | Image Files |
| Developer | |
| First released | 2010 |
| MIME types | image/webp |
| Compression | Lossy or lossless, depending on how the file was written |
| Specification | RFC 9649: WebP Image Format (IETF) |
| FileFlip support | FileFlip reads and writes this format |
What a .webp file can hold#
These are the things a WEBP file either supports or does not, and they are what decides whether a conversion keeps everything or quietly drops something.
| Transparency (alpha channel) | Yes |
|---|---|
| Animation | Yes |
| Lossless compression | Yes |
| Embedded metadata | Yes |
| Colour profiles | Yes |
| High dynamic range | No |
Strengths and limitations of WEBP#
What WEBP does well
- Lossless WebP files run about 25% smaller than an equivalent PNG at pixel-identical quality, by Google's own benchmark
- One format covers lossy, lossless, transparency, and animation, so it can stand in for JPEG, PNG, and GIF individually
- Alpha channel transparency works in both lossy and lossless modes, which JPEG cannot do at all
- Supported natively by every major browser since 2020, so no plugin is needed to display it on the web
Where WEBP falls short
- Locked to 8 bits per color channel, so it can't hold the 10-bit-plus HDR data that AVIF or HEIC can
- Images are capped at 16,383 pixels on a side, too small for some large-format print or panorama work
- Encoding takes noticeably longer than JPEG, which matters if images are compressed on the fly rather than in advance
- Older software still doesn't open it: Windows Photos only gained native support in 2023, and Photoshop only in 2022
Use WebP for images on the web: it's the general-purpose replacement for JPEG, PNG, and GIF now that every major browser renders it natively.
Convert WebP to JPEG or PNG when the file needs to open in older software, a print workflow, or an app that still doesn't recognize the .webp extension.
How to open a .webp file#
A .webp file opens in the programs below, grouped by the platform you are on. If you would rather not install anything, FileFlip converts WEBP into a format your machine already opens, and it does it in the browser tab rather than on a server.
| Platform | Programs that open it |
|---|---|
| Windows | Photos, Adobe Photoshop, IrfanView, XnView, GIMP |
| macOS | Preview, Adobe Photoshop, GIMP, Affinity Photo |
| Linux | GIMP, ImageMagick, XnView MP |
| iOS | Photos, Files |
| Android | Google Photos, Gallery |
| Web | FileFlip |
WEBP questions people ask#
What is a WebP file?
A WebP file is an image saved with Google's WebP codec, which can encode a picture either losslessly or lossily and supports both transparency and animation in the same format. Google introduced it in 2010 to replace JPEG, PNG, and GIF with one format that produces smaller files at comparable quality.
Can WebP animate like a GIF?
Yes, WebP supports animation through its extended file format, which stores a sequence of frames the way GIF does but compresses them far more efficiently. Google has measured roughly 64% smaller files converting animated GIFs to WebP, and every major browser has supported animated WebP since 2020.
Why won't my WebP file open in some programs?
WebP is newer than JPEG or PNG, so support arrived later in some software. Windows Photos only added native WebP support in 2023, and Adobe Photoshop only added it in 2022, so anything older needs a plugin or a converted copy. Converting the file to JPEG or PNG sidesteps the issue for software that never added support at all.
Is WebP lossy or lossless?
WebP can be either, chosen at the time the file is encoded. Lossy WebP works like JPEG, discarding detail to shrink the file, while lossless WebP works like PNG, preserving every pixel exactly. A single format offering both is something neither JPEG nor PNG does on its own.
Does WebP support transparency?
Yes, WebP supports an alpha channel for transparency in both its lossy and lossless modes. That's an advantage over JPEG, which has no transparency support at all, and it's one reason WebP can replace PNG for graphics as well as JPEG for photos.
Converting WEBP files#
Convert WEBP to another format
- WEBP to JPG
- WEBP to PNG
- WEBP to AVIF
- WEBP to BMP
- WEBP to DOCX
- WEBP to EPUB
- WEBP to GIF
- WEBP to HTML
- WEBP to ICO
- WEBP to JPEG
- WEBP to JXL
- WEBP to LaTeX
- WEBP to Markdown
- WEBP to ODT
- WEBP to PDF
- WEBP to PPTX
- WEBP to PSD
- WEBP to RTF
- WEBP to TIFF
- WEBP to TXT
- WEBP to AsciiDoc
- WEBP to BBCode
- WEBP to BibTeX
- WEBP to BMP2
See every WEBP conversion (37 more)
Convert another format to WEBP
- JPG to WEBP
- PNG to WEBP
- ARW to WEBP
- AVIF to WEBP
- BMP to WEBP
- CR2 to WEBP
- CR3 to WEBP
- DNG to WEBP
- DOCX to WEBP
- EPUB to WEBP
- GIF to WEBP
- HEIC to WEBP
- HEIF to WEBP
- HTML to WEBP
- ICO to WEBP
- JPEG to WEBP
- JXL to WEBP
- LaTeX to WEBP
- Markdown to WEBP
- MOBI to WEBP
- NEF to WEBP
- ODT to WEBP
- PDF to WEBP
- PPTX to WEBP
See every image conversion (62 more)
Every conversion runs inside your browser. The file is read from your disk, the work happens on your own machine, and nothing is uploaded. How FileFlip works names the engine behind each family and how to verify that for yourself.