Question 1

Is this image compressor free?

Accepted Answer

Yes. It is completely free with no sign-up, no watermark, and no usage limits. You can compress as many images as you need, and the tool never adds a watermark to your output.

Question 2

Are my images uploaded to a server?

Accepted Answer

No. Compression runs entirely in your browser. Your images never leave your device, so it is safe to compress private or sensitive photos, and there is no upload time to wait for.

Question 3

What is the difference between the Browser and Squoosh engines?

Accepted Answer

The Browser engine uses the built-in canvas encoder and is very fast. The Squoosh engine uses WebAssembly encoders like MozJPEG and libavif, which usually produce smaller files at the same quality. Use Squoosh when file size matters most and Browser when you need speed.

Question 4

Which output format should I choose?

Accepted Answer

WebP and AVIF offer the best compression for photos. PNG is lossless and preserves transparency. JPEG is universally compatible. For the smallest size, choose AVIF or WebP with the Squoosh engine.

Question 5

What does the quality slider do?

Accepted Answer

It controls compression quality from 1 to 100 for lossy formats. Lower values mean smaller files but more visible quality loss. A value of 70-85 is a good balance for most photos, while 90+ keeps near-original quality. PNG ignores the slider because it is lossless.

Question 6

What does the scale slider do?

Accepted Answer

It resizes the image by a percentage before encoding. Scaling down to 70-80% can dramatically reduce file size with little visible difference, especially for large photos destined for web display. Scaling up is possible but rarely useful.

Question 7

Why is the quality slider disabled for PNG?

Accepted Answer

PNG is a lossless format, so there is no quality trade-off to adjust - the output is always pixel-perfect. To reduce a PNG size, use the scale slider or switch the output format to WebP or AVIF, which compress photos far more effectively.

Question 8

How is this different from the homepage batch compressor?

Accepted Answer

The homepage compresses up to 30 images at once for batch workflows. This single-image tool focuses on one photo with a before/after preview, so you can fine-tune quality and scale interactively and see exactly how the result looks before downloading.

Question 9

Is there a size limit?

Accepted Answer

The output canvas is capped at 4096px per edge for browser stability. Larger source images are downscaled automatically, so big photos from modern cameras still compress fine without errors.

Question 10

Does compression remove EXIF metadata?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Re-encoding does not carry over EXIF data, so compressed files will not contain the original camera settings or GPS coordinates. This is good for privacy when sharing photos online, since your location and device info do not travel with the image.

Image Compressor

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