How to Convert PNG to JPG - And When You Should (or Should Not)

The core difference between PNG and JPG

When converting PNG to JPG makes sense

The conversion is worth doing when you have a PNG photograph - a photo that was saved as PNG instead of JPG. This happens when you take a screenshot of a photo, export from certain apps, or receive a photo from someone who saved in the wrong format.

In these cases, the PNG is much larger than it needs to be. A photo saved as PNG at 2000 x 1500 px might be 4-8 MB. The same photo as JPG at quality 85% would be 300-600 KB - roughly 10x smaller - with no visible quality difference at normal viewing sizes. You can do this directly in your browser with the PNG to JPG converter - no software to install.

Convert PNG to JPG when:

• The image is a photograph (complex colours, gradients, natural scenes).
• You do not need a transparent background.
• You are uploading to a platform with a file size limit.
• Sending by email or anywhere file size matters.

When you should not convert

Not all PNGs benefit from conversion. In some cases it actively makes things worse:

• Logos and iconsJPG creates compression artifacts around sharp edges and text. A logo converted to JPG often looks noticeably blurry or blocky compared to the PNG version.
• Screenshots with textText on a screen has very high contrast edges - exactly what JPG handles worst. The text will have visible ringing artifacts around it.
• Images with transparent areasTransparency is not supported in JPG. Transparent pixels become white (or whatever fill colour is used). If you need transparency, stay with PNG or use WebP.
• Images you will edit furtherEach time you save a JPG, more quality is lost. If you are going to edit and re-save the image multiple times, keep it as PNG until the final export.

What happens to transparent areas

This is the question people ask most often. When you convert a PNG with a transparent background to JPG, the transparency is filled with a solid colour - usually white.

This is why transparent product photos and logos should not be converted to JPG. The cutout background becomes a white box, which looks fine on a white page but wrong on any coloured background.

If you want a smaller file than PNG but need to keep transparency, use WebP instead. WebP supports transparent backgrounds and produces files 25-34% smaller than PNG for most images. It is supported by all modern browsers.

Quality settings when converting

JPG has a quality slider from 1 to 100. Higher quality means larger file, lower quality means smaller file but more visible artifacts. For a PNG-to-JPG conversion:

• Quality 85-90%Recommended starting point. Produces files 60-75% smaller than PNG for photographs with no visible difference at normal screen sizes.
• Quality 75-84%A bit more aggressive. Small artifacts may appear around high-contrast edges. Good for thumbnails and web use where files need to be very small.
• Quality 90-100%Minimal size saving over PNG for photographs. Only worth using if you need the highest possible fidelity.

Consider WebP as a better middle ground

If your destination supports it (modern browsers, most image hosting platforms), converting to WebP is often a better choice than converting PNG to JPG:

• WebP supports transparency, so you do not lose the alpha channel.
• Lossy WebP produces files smaller than JPG at the same quality.
• Lossless WebP produces files smaller than PNG with no quality loss.

The main reason to choose JPG over WebP is compatibility. JPG works in every context without exception - old email clients, older software, platforms that do not accept WebP. When you need universal compatibility, JPG is still the right choice. For a full comparison of the formats, see the WebP vs JPG vs PNG guide.