AVIF is the newest mainstream image format, derived from the AV1 video codec. Its headline feature is compression efficiency: at the same visual quality, AVIF files are typically smaller than WebP and much smaller than JPG.
How much smaller?
Results vary by image, but AVIF commonly comes in 20–40% smaller than WebP and 50%+ smaller than JPG at comparable quality. On image-heavy pages that translates into meaningfully faster loads and lower bandwidth bills.
What AVIF does well
- Excellent compression, especially on photographs and gradients.
- Supports transparency and wide colour gamut (HDR).
- Handles both lossy and lossless modes.
- Fewer visible artefacts at low bitrates than JPG.
The trade-offs
- Encoding is slower than JPG or WebP, which matters for bulk or on-the-fly conversion.
- Support, while broad in 2026, still isn't universal across every old device and app — a fallback is wise.
- Tooling and editor support lags a little behind the older formats.
Should you switch?
For a modern website where performance matters, yes — serve AVIF with a WebP or JPG
fallback using the <picture> element, so unsupported clients still
get a good image. For one-off images shared over email or with older software, stick
with JPG or PNG. AVIF is where the web is heading; adopting it with a fallback lets
you get the benefits today without leaving anyone behind.