JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group)
JPG (or JPEG) is a lossy raster image format built for photographs. It compresses images by discarding image data that's hard for the human eye to notice, producing small files at the cost of some quality on repeated saves.
Extensions
.jpg, .jpeg
MIME type(s)
image/jpeg
Compression
Lossy
Transparency
Not supported
Advantages
- Very small file sizes, ideal for web and email
- Supported by virtually every device, browser, and app
- Excellent for photographs with smooth color gradients
Disadvantages
- Lossy compression means quality degrades with repeated edits
- No support for transparency
- Not well suited to sharp text, line art, or flat graphics
Common uses
- Digital photography
- Website and blog images
- Email attachments and social media uploads
How to open a JPG file
Opens natively in every web browser, operating system photo viewer, and image editor — no extra software required.