JPEG XL vs AVIF vs WebP: Which Format to Choose in 2026
Three modern formats promise the same thing: pictures lighter and prettier than old JPEG. But behind the similar slogans hide very different personalities. One saves every byte, another encodes in a flash, the third can do things no one else can. Let's break it down — who is a real rival to whom, and what to pick for your task.
Meet the trio
Before pitting the formats against each other, it helps to know where each comes from — it explains a lot about their character.
- WebP — Google's 2010 format, built on the VP8 video codec. The oldest and most "settled in": understood almost everywhere.
- AVIF — born from AV1, a modern video-compression technology (2019). Because video and photos compress in similar ways, the same tech makes very small image files. The compression-density champion, especially on small web images.
- JPEG XL — the youngest and most ambitious (standard 2021–2022), with two compression engines and unique features. We covered it in detail in "What Is JPEG XL".
An important detail: WebP and AVIF grew out of video, whereas JPEG XL was designed specifically for images. That is where the difference in strengths comes from.
The bottom line, up front
There is no perfect format. AVIF wins on density and browser reach, WebP on speed and compatibility, JPEG XL on quality at high settings and unique features. The rest is detail.
Compression: who weighs less
This is the first reason people leave JPEG. But "compresses better" is too crude a claim, because the result depends on the quality level and the type of picture.
At aggressive compression (small web thumbnails, low quality) AVIF usually leads: at the same visual bar its files can be roughly half the size of an equivalent JPEG. At high quality and on non-photographic content — graphics, text, illustrations with sharp edges — JPEG XL pulls ahead, smearing detail less. WebP usually loses to both newcomers, but is still clearly lighter than old JPEG.
Encoding speed
People forget about it, and they shouldn't: if you convert thousands of pictures, the time difference turns into hours.
Here the picture is almost a mirror of compression. WebP encodes in a flash — almost like plain JPEG. JPEG XL is slower, but on most tasks clearly snappier than AVIF. And AVIF is the heaviest: a single large photo can take several seconds to encode, while WebP finishes in milliseconds. The price for AVIF's better compression is CPU time.
Features: progressive, HDR, animation
If compression is about size, features are about what a format can do. And here each has its own trump card.
- Progressive loading. A strength of JPEG XL: the image fades smoothly from a blurry preview into a crisp one — especially pleasant on a slow connection. AVIF has no real progressive mode.
- HDR and wide color. Supported by both AVIF and JPEG XL. WebP lags here — it is limited to 8 bits per channel.
- Animation. All three can do it, but differently. WebP is a handy GIF replacement, AVIF can too, and JPEG XL is formally the most flexible — though for "real" video, dedicated video codecs are still better.
- Lossless JPEG recompression. A trick unique to JPEG XL only: it shrinks an old JPEG by about 20% losslessly — and the original can be restored bit-for-bit. More in the article on lossless recompression.
Don't confuse "can do" with "supported"
JPEG XL technically does the most — but that doesn't mean the user will see the feature. If a browser doesn't understand the format, all its talents stay on paper. So support matters more than a pretty feature list.
Browser support
This is JPEG XL's sore spot and the deciding factor for the web. As of 2026 the picture looks like this:
- WebP — supported in every current browser. The safest choice.
- AVIF — also wide reach: Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge and Opera have understood it for a while, global support is around 95%.
- JPEG XL — enabled by default only in Safari. Chrome added the format, removed it in late 2022, then brought it back in 2026 using a new, safer engine written in the Rust programming language — but only as a hidden option you have to switch on manually. Firefox kept support in Nightly for a long time and only reached a stable release in 2026.
Why it played out this way is a dramatic story of its own, which we unpacked in "The Future of JPEG XL".
The summary table
Let's put it all in one place so you can compare at a glance.
| Criterion | JPEG XL | AVIF | WebP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Compression at low quality | Very good | Best | Good |
| Quality at high settings | Best | Very good | Average |
| Encoding speed | Medium | Slow | Fast |
| Progressive loading | Yes, advanced | No | No |
| HDR | Yes | Yes | No |
| Lossless from JPEG (~20%) | Yes | No | No |
| Browser support | Partial | Wide | Full |
What to pick for your task
Theory is fine, but you want an answer. Here are the short recommendations.
Public website
Cascade: AVIF → WebP → JPEG. You get the best compression where possible and compatibility everywhere.
Photo archive or backup
JPEG XL: lossless recompression saves about 20% with no quality loss and is reversible.
Apple audience
You can safely serve JPEG XL — Safari and iOS open it out of the box.
Got a picture in JXL and need to open it?
The FormatZ converter turns JPEG XL into a familiar PNG in a couple of seconds — right in your browser, free and with no install.
Convert JXL to PNGWant it the other way — to pack your images into JPEG XL? There is a PNG to JXL converter for that. And to understand the format from scratch, see "What Is JPEG XL".
