Every export screen gives you the same little menu: JPEG, PNG, WebP. And for a long time I just clicked whichever one was highlighted and moved on. Then one day I uploaded a PNG to my website, the page took forever to load, and I actually had to learn what these things do. Turns out it's simple enough that I can explain it in one post.
JPEG — the everyday default
JPEG compresses images by throwing away tiny amounts of detail. That's why a 4000×3000 photo can become a reasonably sized file. For quote images — mostly flat color and text — JPEG at high quality looks practically identical to the original at a fraction of the file size. It's the format for social media and blogs, basically anywhere file size matters.
Skip it when you need transparency or when you're still going to edit the file. JPEG doesn't support transparency, and every re-save costs a little more quality.
PNG — the editor's format
PNG is lossless — it keeps every pixel exactly as it is. Its superpower is transparency: a PNG can show a checkerboard behind it that becomes whatever's behind it on the page. That's why designers keep master files as PNG. The catch is that PNG files are much bigger than JPEGs of the same image, which is exactly the mistake I made with my website.
WebP — the web's new standard
WebP does what JPEG does, only better — similar visual quality at a smaller file size. It's why most modern sites and Google use it. The catch is that it's newer, so some older software and a few social platforms won't take it directly.
The workflow I actually use
Keep your editable master as PNG. Export the final image as JPEG for social media and WebP for the website. Skip transparency unless you genuinely need it.
One thing that matters more than format
Resolution. Export at 1080 pixels or larger on your shortest side and you'll look sharp everywhere. A small, compressed JPEG at big dimensions beats a perfect WebP the size of a postage stamp. Format and size work together — get both right and your images will always look professional.
