AVIF vs WebP: Next-Gen Image Formats Compared

AVIF and WebP represent the cutting edge of image compression. Both significantly outperform legacy formats like PNG and JPG, but they have important differences worth understanding.

AVIF: The Newest Contender

AVIF (AV1 Image File Format) is based on the AV1 video codec, developed by the Alliance for Open Media. It offers the best compression ratios of any image format currently available. AVIF excels particularly at low file sizes where it maintains quality better than any competitor.

WebP: The Established Modern Format

WebP has been around since 2010 and has achieved near-universal browser support. It offers a reliable 25-35% improvement over PNG (lossless) and JPG (lossy). WebP is mature, well-tested, and widely adopted by major websites and CDNs.

Compression Quality

At the same file size, AVIF generally produces better-looking images than WebP, especially in the low-to-medium quality range. The difference is most noticeable in images with fine details, gradients, and textures where AVIF reduces banding and artifacts.

Encoding Speed

AVIF's main weakness is encoding speed. Creating an AVIF file takes significantly longer than WebP, sometimes 10-20x longer. This matters for real-time applications and services that process large volumes of images.

Browser Support (2025)

• WebP: 97%+ global support
• AVIF: 93%+ global support (Safari added support in iOS 16)

Recommendation

For most websites in 2025, WebP is the pragmatic choice due to its speed, broad support, and good-enough compression. Use AVIF when you need the absolute smallest files and encoding speed isn't a constraint, or serve both using the HTML <picture> element for progressive enhancement.

Convert to Next-Gen Formats

Optimize your images by converting to WebP or AVIF. You can also convert back with AVIF to PNG or WebP to PNG when you need broader compatibility.