The PNG file format is widely used on websites to display high-quality digital images. Created to exceed the performance of GIF files, PNGs offer not just lossless compression, but also a much broader and brighter color palette. Read on to discover the pros and cons of PNGs, their main uses, and how to create a PNG image.
PNG is short for Portable Network Graphic, a type of raster image file. It’s particularly popular file type with web designers because it can handle graphics with transparent or semi-transparent backgrounds. The file format isn’t patented, so you can open a PNG using any image editing software without the need for licensing.
PNG files, which use the .png extension, can handle 16 million colors — which definitely sets them apart from most file types.
The PNG image format launched in 1995. IT expert Oliver Fromme came up with the name PING, later shortened to PNG.
PNGs are the next evolution of the GIF format, which had already been around for eight years when PNGs first launched. GIFs had several drawbacks, like requiring a patent license and a limited range of just 256 colors, which didn’t keep pace with ever-improving computer screen resolution. To avoid these issues, PNG files were made patent-free and included a significantly larger color palette. PNGs, as opposed to GIFs, are a single-image format — they don’t support animation.
The Portable Network Graphic is a versatile image file format. Here are just a few ways you can use PNGs:
Designers often use PNG files for logos. That’s because the format supports transparent backgrounds, which means designers can layer logo files on different backgrounds in a way that looks natural.
The PNG format uses lossless compression, which means that this file type retains of all its original data when compressed. This makes PNGs great for detailed graphics and charts on websites because none of the vital information gets lost.
With PNGs, there are many advantages — but also some disadvantages — to consider before using the file format:
Nearly all built-in image editing programs can open PNG files. Whether you use a Mac or Windows computer, simply search for the file name and double-click on it. You can then choose the program you want to use from the list of options your computer gives you.
All the major web browsers can also open PNGs, including Chrome, Edge and Safari. To view it, just drag and drop a PNG file from your desktop to your browser.
Follow these three easy steps to create a PNG using Adobe Photoshop:
To edit the transparency of your image:
Unlike GIFs, ordinary PNGs don’t allow for animation. In 2001, the developers of PNG came up with a new animation-friendly format called the Multiple-image Network Graphic (MNG). But with GIFs remaining the more popular animation file, MNGs failed to gain widespread popularity.
The simple answer is that PNGs offer lossless compression and JPEG files don’t. This means, unlike JPEGs, PNGs don’t lose any of their image data when they’re compressed. On the flipside, lossless compression tends to make PNGs much bigger files than JPEGs, so they require more storage space.
Find out more about the differences between PNGs and JPEGs.
PNGs are a form of raster file. That means they’re built using a fixed number of color pixels, rather than the mathematical algorithms used in vector files. Raster files like PNGs tend to work better for detailed photos and graphics, whereas vector files are usually a better choice for logo designs and illustrations.
EXIF data relates to camera exposure details, the time a photo was saved, and more. One of the drawbacks of the PNG file format is that it’s unable to embed EXIF data, which many digital cameras currently use. So, using a PNG may pose a problem if you want to immediately see detailed information about the individual pictures you’ve taken.
Very effectively. The lossless compression of PNG files means they can display text-heavy images such as screenshots and page layouts at a high quality. The same goes for scans of printed text including handwritten documents and newspaper pages. None of the original image data gets sacrificed during the compression process.
Lighter file sizes make up for lossy compression.
Apple invented this file type to offer high-quality images in small file sizes.
Which one strikes the balance between file size and image quality?
Which image format is better for print?
Learn how to decide which is best for your design work.
Measure up the storage needs of PNG and Bitmap (BMP) files.
Want to make a PNG smaller? Learn how to compress an image.