What is an AVIF file? How to open it or convert AVIF to JPG

AVIF (AV1 Image File Format) stores pictures using the same compression as the AV1 video codec. Its selling point is size: at similar visual quality an AVIF is often around half the size of a JPG, and usually smaller than WebP too. It also supports transparency, HDR and animation.

That's why websites use it. Smaller images load faster and cost less bandwidth, so many sites and image CDNs now send AVIF to any browser that can display it — and that's the file you end up with when you right-click and save.

Current versions of Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari (iOS 16 and macOS Ventura or later) display AVIF. Problems usually show up elsewhere: older versions of Windows Photos and Office, many photo editors, messaging apps and upload forms (job sites, government portals, print shops) only accept JPG or PNG.

On Windows, installing Microsoft's free "AV1 Video Extension" from the Microsoft Store lets the built-in Photos app open AVIF files. That fixes viewing on your own PC, but it won't help when a website rejects the file.

For sharing and uploading, convert it. Choose JPG for photos — it's accepted everywhere and keeps the file small. Choose PNG if the image has a transparent background (a logo or a cut-out product shot), because JPG can't store transparency and fills it with a solid color.

Localvert's AVIF to JPG and AVIF to PNG converters decode the file inside your browser, so the image is never uploaded. You can convert several files at once and download them together.

If you're publishing images on your own website, AVIF is worth keeping — it's one of the best ways to make pages load faster. For everything else (sending to people, printing, uploading to forms), a JPG copy saves you trouble. Converting from AVIF to JPG loses a tiny amount of quality, so keep the original if you might need it later.