Using installed third-party image editing software like Adobe Photoshop. Great article, already tried a few webp integrations but since Safari does not support it, I’ve ran into a lot of troubles and decided to remove it . Once you’ve activated the plugin, you can use the General Settings box to choose your compression level. Next, we’ll look at some installable WordPress plugins for optimization.

The reference implementation consists of converter software in the form of a command-line program for Linux and a programming library for the decoding, the same as for WebM. The open-source community ported the converter to other platforms, such as Windows. As of November 2021, web browsers that support WebP had 96% market share. The supporting libwebp library reached version 1.0 in April 2018.

Reducing website image sizes

MNG and APNG, PNG-based animated image formats, supporting lossless 24-bit RGB color and 8-bit alpha channel. The plugin converts your images to WebP automatically if the visitor’s browser supports them. As we’ve established, the chances of a visitor’s browser not supporting WebP in 2023 is very low.

• It’s becoming accepted on more and more devices—much to the chagrin of competitors JPEG 2000 and JPEG XR—and is on track to be the new default web image format.
• A JPEG refers to an image encoded in the Joint Photographic Experts Group format.
• Depending on your OS, use the appropriate link above to download the libraries, then extract the files to your computer.
• But one place where this practice seems to be ignored are situations where an image has to expand indefinitely to cover some area, like a large hero.
• It’s highly compatible and enjoys a small file size with very little loss of quality.
• Now, 94.08% of the total users on the internet can see WebP images.
• Another downside to this format is that it doesn’t support transparency nor animation.

To use Imagify to deliver WordPress WebP images, you’ll need to install the plugin from WordPress.org and add your API key to get started. In terms of features, ShortPixel and Imagify share a lot of similarities. The most significant difference comes when you look at pricing. Whereas ShortPixel charges you based on images with no size limit per image, Imagify charges you based on overall file size, with no image limit. ShortPixel counts each WordPress image size that you optimize as a credit.

WebP Format: Technology, Pros & Cons, and Alternatives

WebP can free up space, allowing websites to offer more content. This is especially important for websites with a lot of images like webshops or photography blogs. WebP aims to balance quality and practicality when it comes to website images. With the help of predictive coding, WebP files compress photos and graphics without reducing the quality of their appearance. Smaller image sizes also ease the strain on user broadband connections and make websites faster to navigate, improving page experience. You can also use the Optimal plugin to help you convert images for browsers that support WebP.

If the idea of using Node bugs you, you can use the WebP Photoshop plugin and skip ahead. If you’re familiar with Photoshop, the easiest way to get a taste for WebP is to try out Should you prefer WebP image format to PNG the WebP Photoshop Plugin. After you install it, you’ll be able to use the Save As option (not Save For Web!) and select either WebP or WebP Lossless from the format dropdown.

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This plugin serves as a converter that gears WebP to browsers that support this format but displays JPG or PNG for browsers that do not. The ability to use more images without worrying about sluggish loading times can help to enhance your WordPress site’s overall look and feel. Having the freedom to use the size and quality of images you want also gives you more flexibility in your site’s design. But you are incorrect in saying that the JPEG container format leaves no room for lossless compression. It is true there isn’t much wiggle room, but there is wiggle room nonetheless.

ShortPixel gives you support for webp images in posts and pages. But, themes like Solidad do many things their own way, https://wizardsdev.com/ and ignore the webp images. And some of the theme images may be shown on all pages, so webp would be useful there.

Using WebP Images in WordPress

This image conversion site can convert one or multiple image files from one format to almost any other you could want, including WebP. Choose your starting and ending format, and this tool will do the rest. WebP takes the best parts of both the lossy JPG format and the lossless PNG format and makes them available in a compact file!

For most people, the amount is negligible, but for visual sites like photography or graphic design portfolios you want your visual quality at maximum. That stellar performance, combined with the vote of confidence from Google, really paves the way for WebP becoming the new default web file format. Illustration by OrangeCrushThanks to its owner Google, the WebP image format has become a hot topic recently. It’s becoming accepted on more and more devices—much to the chagrin of competitors JPEG 2000 and JPEG XR—and is on track to be the new default web image format. And despite all the convoluted technical details, for anyone who posts pictures online, WebP is a big deal. There’s not much difference in quality between the JPEG images on the left and WebP images on the right.

Once finished, your WordPress site will start serving WebP images. Upon activation, the plugin will add a new menu item to your admin sidebar labeled ‘SG Optimizer’. First, you need to install and activate the SG Optimizer plugin. Once the optimization is done, you can visit a page or post containing a few images. Take your mouse over to an image and then right-click to select ‘Open image in new tab’.