JPG, PNG, GIF. WTF?

I have often been asked what’s the difference between a .jpg file, a .png file and a .gif file, when making graphics for blog design. Here’s what you need to know, as simple as I can put them:

If you want a faster loading site, then go for .jpg files, as they are smaller in size than .png and .gif files. You have to remember, however, that .jpg files do not allow for transparency. So if you save a transparent image in .jpg format, you will end up with an image with a white background.

If you are  very particular about graphics quality, and you don’t mind a longer loading site time, or you need transparency in your image, then .png is what you should choose. There is usually no dramatic difference between the quality of a .jpg and a .png file, but if you look closely and compare the two, you’ll see what I mean.

.Gif files are essentially animated files (the blinkies are an example of them). Among the three, .gifs load slowest, since it contains several layers, thus its file size is usually bigger. This particular file type also allows for transparency like .png.

So there. That’s about it. The basic differences of the three file formats. Usually, I save my images in the .png format, especially my freebies, since they have to be able to blend with the blog backgrounds of the people who grab them.

I hope you I’ve explained well the difference between the three.  🙂