Compress an image without uploading it
Cut an image’s file size by choosing a quality level. You see the before and after size before committing, and the file never leaves your browser.
Drop an image here
JPG, PNG, WebP, GIF or BMP — the file never leaves your browser
The image is processed inside this tab. Nothing is sent to a server, and EXIF metadata, including GPS location, is not copied into the output file.
Step by step
- Choose or drop the image you want to shrink.
- Move the quality slider and watch the estimated size.
- Compare the result against the original.
- Download the compressed file.
How does image compression work?
Compressing a photo means discarding detail the eye is unlikely to notice and describing what remains more economically. JPEG and WebP do this by grouping neighboring pixels of similar color and keeping less detail in subtle gradations.
The quality setting decides how much gets thrown away. Between 80 and 90 the difference is effectively invisible while the file already drops sharply. Below 60, blocky patches start showing up in skies, gradients and flat areas of color — that is the point where compression becomes something people can see.
What quality setting should you pick?
For a photo headed to a website, 80 is the most reliable balance: a large size reduction with a loss that is hard to spot on screen.
For a photo that will be edited again or printed, stay above 90, because each round of compression stacks on the previous one. For thumbnails and previews, 60 is usually plenty, since the artifacts disappear at small sizes.
Why does the file sometimes get bigger?
Compressing a PNG screenshot to JPEG can increase its size. PNG excels at flat color and crisp text, which is exactly the content JPEG struggles with — it spends bits trying to reproduce hard edges.
That is why the tool shows the final size before you download and flags the case where the result came out larger than the original. When that happens, keep the original or try WebP, which handles both kinds of content well.
When to use it
- Product photo too heavy for the storefront
- Image rejected by an upload form for exceeding its limit
- Email attachment over the size cap
- Photo library eating storage on a phone
- Blog image dragging down a page speed score
More from Image Tools
- Resize imageSet width and height by pixels or percentage.
- Convert imageSwitch between JPG, PNG and WebP, with the result verified.
- HEIC to JPGiPhone photos to JPG, without uploading them.
- Remove location and metadata from a photoSee and erase GPS, device and date before you share a photo.
- Combine photos into a PDFSeveral photos in one PDF, one per page.
- Passport photo makerA 4x6 sheet with six 2x2 photos, ready to print.
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
How do you compress an image without losing quality?
Keep quality between 80 and 90. In that range the size reduction is substantial and the visual difference is effectively invisible on screen. Truly lossless compression comes from changing format, not from lowering quality.
How much smaller can an image get?
It depends on the content and the source format. Photographs typically drop 50% to 80% at quality 80. Images that were already compressed shrink far less, because the discardable detail is already gone.
Can you compress several images at once?
Not yet — the tool handles one image at a time. Since everything runs in the browser, processing many large files in parallel would exhaust the tab’s memory.
Does compressing change the image dimensions?
No. Compression only affects how much information is stored per pixel; width and height stay the same. To change dimensions, use the resize tool.