You have probably noticed that many images downloaded from websites now save with a .webp extension rather than .jpg or .png. This is not a coincidence — WebP is now the default image format on most major websites and CDNs.
Where WebP came from
Google developed WebP and released it in 2010 as part of a broader effort to make the web faster. The format is derived from the VP8 video codec — essentially applying video compression techniques to still images. The goal was to create a single format that could replace both JPEG and PNG, achieving smaller file sizes while matching or exceeding their quality.
How WebP compression works
WebP supports two compression modes. Lossy WebP uses block-based compression similar to JPEG but with more sophisticated prediction and entropy coding, typically achieving files 25–35% smaller than equivalent JPEG at the same visual quality. Lossless WebP compresses pixel data without any quality loss, typically 26% smaller than equivalent PNG. Both modes support full alpha channel transparency, unlike JPEG which has no transparency support at all.
Browser support today
As of 2026, WebP is supported in all major browsers: Chrome, Firefox, Safari (since version 14 in 2020), Edge, and Opera. Global browser support exceeds 97% of web users. For the small remaining percentage on very old devices, websites typically serve a JPEG fallback using the HTML picture element.
WebP and PDF
The relationship between WebP and PDF is one-directional from each tool's perspective: WebP images can be converted to PDF and PDF pages can be exported as WebP. In both cases, the browser's native codec handles encoding and decoding. The quality advantages of WebP over JPEG are most meaningful when the output files will be served on the web — for archival PDF use, the format of the intermediate image matters less than the quality setting you choose.
