How to Convert and Change WebP Images to JPG File Format

What is WebP Image Format

The WebP image format is a modern format developed by Google that provides superior lossless and lossy compression for images on the web. Some key features of WebP include:

  • Smaller file sizes – WebP images are over 25% smaller in size compared to JPEG images at equivalent quality levels. This results in faster page load times.
  • Lossless compression – The lossless compression used by WebP allows exact reconstruction of the original image.
  • Lossy compression – WebP’s lossy compression mode can produce even smaller file sizes, comparable to JPEG compression.
  • Transparency support – WebP supports alpha transparency at a very low storage cost overhead compared to PNG.
  • Animation support – WebP also supports animated images similar to GIFs.

Why Convert WebP to JPG

While WebP offers superior compression capabilities, the JPEG format enjoys more universal browser support and compatibility with image editing software. Reasons you may need to convert WebP images to JPG include:

  • Browser compatibility – Some older browsers like IE do not support WebP. Converting to JPG ensures broader compatibility.
  • Software compatibility – Many common image editing tools do not support opening or editing WebP files natively.
  • Familiarity and consistency – JPG is a tried and tested format that users and developers are accustomed to handling.

Methods to Convert WebP to JPG

There are several easy methods to convert your WebP images to JPG format. Here are some popular options:

Online Converters

Online converters like Convertio and CloudConvert offer a quick way to convert WebP to JPG. Simply upload your WebP file(s) and download the JPG versions. Handy for one-off conversions.

Google Chrome

The Google Chrome browser has a built-in context menu option to save WebP images as JPGs. Just right-click a WebP image on a web page and select “Save image as JPG”. Useful for individual images.

Adobe Photoshop

Adobe Photoshop users can install a WebP plugin to enable opening, editing and saving WebP files as JPEG/JPG directly from within Photoshop. This is helpful for bulk converting multiple WebP images to JPG in one go.

Command Line Tools

For developers, Google provides command line interfaces (CLI) like cwebp (WebP to JPG) and dwebp (JPG to WebP) to automate WebP and JPG conversions programmatically.

WebP Converter Applications

There are also dedicated desktop applications like XnConvert (Windows) and WebPonize (Mac) that allow batch converting WebP images to JPEG and other formats in a few clicks.

WebP to JPG Conversion Considerations

When converting images from WebP to JPG, keep in mind:

  • Both WebP and JPG use lossy compression techniques. Converting between the two formats can cause additional quality loss.
  • WebP supports transparency, but JPG does not. Transparent areas will need to be flattened to a solid background color.
  • Bulk conversions can be resource intensive. Use command line tools or specialized converter apps for large batches of images.
  • Metadata like EXIF data and color profiles can be lost when converting formats. Some tools provide options to preserve metadata.

Step-by-Step Guide to Convert WebP to JPG

Follow these steps to easily convert a WebP image to JPG using the free online Convertio tool:

  1. Go to https://convertio.co/webp-jpg/
  2. Click “Choose Files” and select the WebP file from your computer
  3. Verify the conversion format is set to JPG/JPEG
  4. Click the “Convert” button to start the WebP to JPG conversion
  5. When the conversion completes, click “Download JPG” to save the converted image to your device

That’s all there is to it! The downloaded JPG version will match the original WebP image in terms of resolution and quality. You can bulk convert multiple WebP to JPG using desktop tools for large image collections.

Conclusion

The WebP format provides cutting-edge compression capabilities but lacks universal software support. Converting WebP images to the more compatible JPG format is easy using online tools, browser extensions, image editors, command line interfaces and desktop converter apps. Each method has specific use cases for one-off versus bulk batch conversions. When publishing images for the web, you can upload both WebP and JPG versions to take advantage of WebP’s compression while retaining JPG’s wider compatibility.