WebP
WebP is Google's image format with lossy and lossless compression that produces files 25-34% smaller than JPEG and PNG - for faster pages.
What is WebP?
WebP is a modern image format developed by Google that supports both lossy and lossless compression in a single file type (.webp). It also handles transparency (alpha channel) and animation, so it can replace JPEG, PNG, and GIF. At comparable visual quality, WebP files are typically 25-34% smaller than JPEG and around 26% smaller than PNG.
Why does WebP matter?
Images often make up the bulk of a product page’s total weight, and heavy images are one of the most common causes of slow loading. Smaller files mean faster pages, better Core Web Vitals, and lower data usage on mobile - all of which affect both conversion and rankings. WebP delivers that saving with no visible quality loss, and the format is supported today by all modern browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Safari).
Common use cases
- High-resolution product photos where JPEG files get too heavy for fast mobile display.
- Graphics with transparency that would otherwise need large PNG files (logos, badges, icons).
- Banners and lifestyle images at the top of the page that affect LCP and layout stability.
- Delivery via CDN, where the format is negotiated per browser to save bandwidth.
Shopify perspective
You do not need to convert to WebP yourself in Shopify. Shopify’s image CDN automatically serves WebP - or the even smaller AVIF - to browsers that support it, based on the Accept header, whether you upload JPEG or PNG. If you want to control the format manually in your theme, you can pass the format parameter to the image_url filter. In practice, focus on uploading sharp source images at the right dimensions and always filling in alt text, and let the CDN handle the rest.