Image formats trip people up constantly. Your iPhone saves photos as HEIC, but Instagram only accepts JPG. You need a transparent background, but JPEG doesn't support it. Your web designer wants WebP for speed, but your camera shoots RAW. This guide explains which format to use when - and how to convert in seconds.
The Image Format Cheat Sheet
| Format | Transparency | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| JPEG / JPG | No | Photos, social media, email |
| PNG | Yes | Screenshots, logos, UI assets |
| WebP | Yes | Web images - smaller than PNG/JPG |
| HEIC | No | iPhone/iPad native format |
| TIFF | Yes | Print, professional photography |
| SVG | Yes | Icons, illustrations (vector) |
| GIF | Partial | Simple animations |
| AVIF | Yes | Next-gen web format, tiny files |
When to Convert
- HEIC → JPG: You shot on an iPhone and need to send the photo to someone on Android or Windows.
- PNG → WebP: You're building a website and want smaller images without losing quality.
- JPG → PNG: You need to add a transparent background to a photo.
- TIFF → JPG: Your print-ready file is too large to email.
- BMP → PNG: Old Windows bitmap files take up unnecessary space.
How to Convert Images with RunConvert
RunConvert's image converter supports all the formats above and hundreds more. Here's how:
- Upload your image: Drag and drop or browse. You can upload multiple images at once for bulk conversion.
- Select the output format: Choose JPG, PNG, WebP, AVIF, TIFF, or any format you need.
- Convert: Click Convert. For most images, conversion takes under a second.
- Download: Save your converted file. RunConvert deletes your uploads automatically after conversion.
Quality Tips
- Avoid JPEG → JPEG: Every JPEG re-encode loses quality. Go JPEG → PNG → edit → PNG → JPEG to minimize loss.
- PNG → WebP is nearly lossless by default. WebP files are typically 25–35% smaller than equivalent PNGs.
- HEIC → JPG preserves nearly all quality - HEIC and JPEG use similar compression technology.
- For transparent images, always use PNG, WebP, or AVIF as output - JPEG will fill transparency with white.
Batch Image Conversion
Need to convert 50 product photos from PNG to WebP? RunConvert supports batch uploads - select all your files at once and they'll all convert to the same output format in one go.
Conclusion
Image conversion is one of those tasks that sounds technical but is actually painless with the right tool. RunConvert handles PNG, JPG, WebP, HEIC, TIFF, and more - just upload, pick your format, and download. No account, no watermark, no fuss.