JPG vs AVIF: classic photos or next-gen compression?
JPG is the default everywhere—email, print, legacy CMS uploads. AVIF shrinks photos further with the AV1 codec while keeping excellent detail, but support is newer. Pick based on where the image will live.
| JPG | AVIF | |
|---|---|---|
| Compression | Lossy JPEG | Very efficient AV1 |
| Typical web size | Baseline | Often smallest |
| Transparency | No | Yes |
| Browser support | Universal | Good on modern browsers |
| Best for | Sharing and printing | Performance-focused websites |
Verdict
Keep JPG when you need one file that opens everywhere. Serve AVIF on modern sites with a JPG fallback for older clients.