Image Tools

What is WebP? Why Google Recommends It for Websites

📅 Published June 24, 2026 🕒 Last Updated: July 2026 ⏱ 6 min read ✅ Reviewed by Rashid Amin, Founder of NexaTools

If you have run your website through Google PageSpeed Insights, you have probably seen the recommendation "serve images in next-gen formats." That next-gen format is almost always WebP. It sounds like a small technical detail, but the difference it makes to load times and search rankings is significant enough that most modern websites have already switched.

What Exactly Is WebP

WebP is an image format developed by Google, designed specifically to replace JPG and PNG for web use. It supports both lossy compression (like JPG) and lossless compression (like PNG), plus transparency and animation in a single format. The core advantage is efficiency: a WebP image typically achieves 25-35% smaller file size than a comparable JPG, and even more compared to PNG, without a visible drop in quality.

Why Google Recommends It

Page speed is a ranking factor in Google Search, and images are usually the heaviest part of any webpage. By recommending WebP, Google is effectively asking site owners to reduce total page weight, which improves load time, lowers bounce rates, and reduces bandwidth costs — all of which contribute to a better experience for the visitor and better performance in search results.

Smaller File Size
WebP compresses more efficiently than JPG or PNG, often reducing file size significantly with no visible quality loss.
Supports Transparency & Animation
Unlike JPG, WebP supports transparent backgrounds, and unlike GIF, it supports animation at a much smaller file size.
Wide Browser Support
All major modern browsers — Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge — fully support WebP as of 2026.

When WebP Is Not the Right Choice

WebP is built for the web, not for print or design software. If you are sending a file to a professional print shop, a client's design team, or software that expects a standard format, stick with PNG or a high-resolution JPG. Some older tools and workflows still do not fully support WebP, so it is best used specifically for images that will live on a website.

Step-by-Step: Convert to WebP with NexaTools

  1. Open the NexaTools Image Converter
  2. Upload your PNG or JPG image
  3. Select WebP as the output format
  4. Compare the file size reduction in the preview
  5. Download your WebP file, ready to upload to your website
✦ Keep a Backup Format
When converting your entire image library to WebP for a website, keep the original PNG or JPG files stored separately. If you ever need the image for print or for a platform that does not support WebP, you will not have to recreate it from scratch.

WebP for E-Commerce and Blogs

Product photos and blog featured images are usually the largest files on any page. Converting these specifically to WebP delivers the biggest visible improvement in load time, since these are often the images visitors wait longest for. Combine WebP conversion with the Image Resizer to make sure dimensions match what your site actually displays, rather than uploading oversized originals.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Converting print-bound images to WebP — WebP is a web format only; keep print assets in PNG or high-resolution JPG.
  • Skipping the backup — always keep an original PNG or JPG copy before converting your image library.
  • Uploading oversized WebP files — converting format alone doesn't fix images that are still far larger than their display size; resize first.

Still Comparing Formats?

If you are unsure whether WebP, PNG, or JPG fits your specific situation, our full comparison in PNG vs JPG vs WebP breaks down exactly when to use each one.

⚡ Convert Your Images to WebP

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MORE ARTICLES: PNG vs JPG vs WebP → Image Converter → Image Compressor → Image Resizer →