What Is WebP? Google's Modern Image Format Explained

What Is WebP? Google's Modern Image Format Explained WebP is the image format Google built to make the web faster. It produces smaller files than JPEG, supports transparency like PNG, and handles animation like GIF — all in a single format. Since every major browser now supports it, WebP has become the default recommendation for web images in 2026. Here's what the format actually does under the hood, how it compares to the alternatives, and when you should (and shouldn't) use it. WebP at a Glance Property Details File extension .webp MIME type image/webp Compression Lossy (VP8) and lossless (VP8L) Color depth 8-bit per channel (24-bit RGB, 32-bit RGBA) Transparency Yes — full alpha channel (lossy and lossless) Animation Yes — multi-frame sequences with timing control Max dimensions 16,383 × 16,383 pixels Metadata EXIF, XMP, ICC color profiles Creator Google Year introduced 2010 Browser support Chrome 17+, Firefox 65+, Safari 14+, Edge 18+ License BSD — royalty-free How WebP Compression