When is JPG better than TIFF?
JPG pictures are smaller and widely supported by almost all web browsers and programs, while TIFF images are larger, highly detailed, and less compatible with most web browsers and programs.
JPG picture format is ideal for archiving a larger collection of photos, email attachments, and web images on storage devices with limited space. It strikes the best balance between smaller file sizes, browser support, and image quality.
When is TIFF better than JPG?
TIFF images support lossless compression and wide color spaces, resulting in high-quality images as all image data is preserved. JPG pictures are smaller but hardly support CMYK and use lossy compression, resulting in compression artifacts and slightly degraded image quality.
The TIFF format is ideal for professional publishing, printing, and scanning. The benefits of TIFF images include multipage support, detailed and high-quality image archiving, and better color accuracy since the format supports different color profiles such as RGB, LAB, and CMYK.
TIFF versus JPG Table Comparison
| Aspect/Factor | TIFF | JPG |
| Transparency | Supports transparency. | Does not support transparency |
| File Size | Larger files than JPG files. | Smaller files than TIFF files. |
| Image Quality | High-quality images compared to JPG. | Slightly lower-quality images than TIFF images. |
| Performance | Loads slower online than JPGs. | Loads faster online than TIFFs. |
| Structure | A raster graphics with Image File Header (IFH), image file directory (IFD), and the bitmap data. | Raster–based, starts with a binary value '0xFFD8' and ends with a binary value '0xFFD9'. |
| Animation | Does not support animation | Does not support animation |
| Storage | Larger and needs more storage space than JPG. | Smaller and demands less storage space than TIFF. |
| Compression | Supports lossless and lossy JPEG compression. | Supports lossy compression |
| Browser Support | Limited browser support compared to JPG. | Supported by nearly all browsers than TIFF. |
Differences and similarities between JPG and TIFF images
TIFF and JPG are bitmapped image formats similar in animation support and lossy compression but dissimilar in transparency support, file size, lossless compression, image quality, browser support, storage, structure, and performance. The comparison of JPG versus TIFF is discussed below.
Transparency
TIFF supports alpha channel transparency, but JPG does not. However, TIFF's support for transparency is less effective since the supported alpha channels hardly work in design and web development. Its transparent backgrounds are incompatible with most web-based programs.
The TIFF file extension allows alpha data to be added by specifying more than three samples per pixel. In contrast, JPG images cannot merge seamlessly with websites with varying background colors. Its transparent pixels are filled with black or white, solid colors that become opaque when an image is saved in a JPG.
File Size
JPG files are relatively smaller than TIFF files. TIFF stores editable scanned images or photos meant for publishing or printing. Thus, a TIFF’s file size depends on the number of bands in each photo page layer. The pixel data in an image band cannot exceed 4GB.
However, the largest compliant TIFF image should be below 8GB, assuming two bands of approximately 4GB size are utilized. Conversely, a JPG file extension supports an image file size limit of 65,535 x 65,535 pixels, which equals four gigapixels.
The maximum TIFF image dimension is 2^32-1 x 2^32-1 pixels, while the approximate maximum image size for an uncompressed 24-bit RGB image is 3 * 2^24 Tb. Based on file dimensions, TIFF files are larger than JPG files. Besides, JPG lossy compression is more efficient than TIFFs lossless and lossy compression, resulting in smaller JPG than TIFFs.
Image Quality
TIFF is a higher-quality image format than JPG. TIFF files or images support transparent information, multiple layers or multipage designs, and high-resolution metadata and data. Unlike JPG, an 8-bit format, TIFF supports 8-bit and 16-bit pixels per channel.
TIFF image also supports more color spaces, namely LAB, CMYK, RGB, palette (indexed), grayscale, and bi-level (white and black), compared to a JPG image that only supports RGB spectrum. As such, TIFF images produce the most stunning visual accuracy after compression compared to JPG.
While lossy compression results in data loss in both formats, JPG lossy compression is more efficient than TIFFs, making JPGs have slightly lower quality than TIFFs. Besides, lossless TIFFs are high-res images that preserve image sharpness, color saturation, and edge details, unlike JPGs.
Performance
JPG files support efficient lossy compression, resulting in smaller and more widely supported files or images than TIF files. Thus, while TIFF is a versatile format compatible with most Operating Systems and programs, its lossless and lossy images are heavier than JPG, making it unsuitable for web use.
Compared to JPG files, TIFFs require more bandwidth and consume more bytes. As a result, TIFF loads slower on websites and minimizes online user experience compared to JPG. JPGs are smaller, increase web responsiveness, and improve user experience.
Structure
TIFF and JPG are bitmapped file formats. However, their structures cannot be compared. For example, TIFF supports a multilayer structure with tags recognizing all file values within a TIFF image. The tags indicate the kind of image info contained, like image height and width and the type of data storage format.
On the other hand, a JPG file comprises a series of segments starting with a marker and several binary OxFFXX data. The first marker has a binary value, 'OxFFD8', and ends with a binary value, 'OxFFD9'. The makers designate the time of the JPG data or information.
Animation
JPG and TIFF image formats do not support animation. Both formats support still images. However, unlike JPG, TIFF supports multiple pages, which is suitable for storing distinct frames of animation sequences. Thus, TIFF files can be applied in specific animation software to produce high-quality animated content.
Storage
The TIFF format stores both lossy and losslessly compressed image data, while the JPG format only stores lossy compressed data. However, the JPG format uses a more efficient compression technique than the TIFF format, resulting in smaller JPG files requiring less storage space than TIFF files or images.
However, both file formats and images can be stored indefinitely with proper handling, the correct storage mediums, and less exposure to harsh conditions that can destroy or delete file data. JPG and TIFF store files in File Systems, Content Delivery Networks, Hard Drives, Base64, and the Cloud.
Compression
TIFF uses lossless and lossy compression, while JPG only supports lossy compression. TIFF images support lossless PackBits/ZIP and Lempel Ziv Welch (LZW) compression. TIFF files are often larger than JPGs. TIFF’s LZW lossless compression decreases file sizes by nearly 6%.
In some cases, the non-photo TIFF image sizes increase by 50% under lossless LZW compression. PackBits/ZIP compression reduces TIFF files by 20% but can lead to zero compression when handling non-photographic TIFF images. Lossy TIFF deletes some image data, which is the case with lossy JPG.
JPG lossy compression reduces the image size by allowing some image data to be deleted or lost. The compression method assumes a block-based compression, where subsampling color information reduces the original file data through re-order, Huffman Coding, and Discrete Cosine Transform coefficients.
Browser Support
JPG and TIFF formats have existed for more than thirty years. However, unlike TIFF, JPG is compatible and widely supported by nearly all older and new web browsers. JPG is currently supported by Discord, Vivaldi, Safari, Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Edge, and Internet Explorer, except IE6.
Internet Explorer 6 only necessitates additional plug-ins or extensions to support JPGs. In contrast, TIFF is widely supported by most Operating Systems, including iOS, Android, Linux, macOS, and Windows, but it is only compatible with and supported by the Apple Safari browser.
Unlike JPG, TIFF is not supported by Edge, Internet Explorer, Discord, Brave, Opera, Chrome, and Firefox. However, users can install additional plug-ins or TIFF viewer software extensions to view TIFF files or images on Chrome.
Convert JPG to TIFF or TIFF to JPG
Convertjack is an efficient tool that can easily convert JPG to TIFF. TIFFs are preferred to JPG because they support additional color profiles, support lossy and lossless compression, and result in high-quality images. The flexibility makes TIFF ideal for professional publishing, editing, and printing.
JPG best balances image quality, file size, and browser compatibility. JPG images are smaller and load faster online. The best TIFF to JPG converter is Convertjack because it is free, offers different functionalities, and helps users generate crispy, high-quality JPG images.