Modern Image File Types: Why WebP and AVIF Are the New Standard

The Problem with Old Image Formats

JPG and PNG files are everywhere—but they’re not built for modern web performance. They're heavy, lack compression efficiency, and slow down load time—especially on mobile. If your site relies on dozens of product or hero images, outdated formats will kill your Core Web Vitals and frustrate users. Google has made it clear: fast-loading pages get preference. If your images are bloated, your rankings (and revenue) will suffer.

Why WebP and AVIF Win

WebP is 25–35% smaller than JPG with the same visual quality. AVIF is even better—offering up to 50% size savings while preserving detail and transparency. These formats also support modern features like alpha channels and animations without the bloat of GIFs. Most major browsers support them natively now, and fallback strategies are easy to implement. That means no more excuses for sticking with legacy formats.

Switching to WebP or AVIF reduces total page size, improves LCP (Largest Contentful Paint), and boosts your PageSpeed score. All of which help with SEO and user satisfaction.

How to Implement Next-Gen Formats

Convert your assets using tools like Squoosh, TinyPNG Pro, or ImageMagick. Many CMS platforms and image CDNs now support automatic WebP/AVIF conversion. For custom HTML, use the `` element:

<picture>
  <source srcset="image.avif" type="image/avif">
  <source srcset="image.webp" type="image/webp">
  <img src="image.jpg" alt="Description">
</picture>

This way, browsers get the best file they support. Bonus: compress your images before upload and serve from a CDN with `lazy` loading enabled for max performance.