What is the WEBP file format?
.webp files were designed by Google to enable storing pictures in both lossy and lossless compression formats within a single open standard. The lossy .webp mode uses predictive coding to estimate the color values of adjacent pixels, then encodes the variance between the real values and the estimated values. Many of those differences are zero or near-zero, which leads to significant reductions in file size - typically 25-34% smaller than a comparable JPEG at equivalent visual quality.
The format is built on a RIFF container that identifies three internal variants: VP8 for lossy frames, VP8L for lossless compression, and VP8X for extended features such as transparency (alpha channel) and animation. The animation capability makes .webp a modern alternative to the GIF format, supporting full 24-bit color per frame rather than GIF's 256-color palette.
.webp images are natively supported by all modern web browsers including Google Chrome, Firefox, Edge and Safari (since version 14). Applications such as GIMP, IrfanView, XnView MP and ImageMagick (with libwebp) can open and convert .webp files on the desktop. Google also provides command-line encoders cwebp and dwebp as part of the open-source libwebp library.
Security & safety
RISK: LOWA WebP is passive image data, not executable code, so opening one is normally safe. One notable exception: in 2023 a critical heap-overflow vulnerability in libwebp (CVE-2023-4863) let a maliciously crafted WebP run code in browsers and apps that bundled the library - Chrome, Firefox, Edge and many others shipped emergency patches. The practical advice is just to keep your browser and image apps updated; a fully patched system opens WebP safely. Beware "free webp to jpg" sites that bundle adware - prefer client-side tools (Squoosh) or reputable apps (IrfanView, GIMP).
Format details
in a nutshellPrograms that open WEBP files
Windows5 apps
GIMP
Open-source Open the WebP to edit, then File > Export As to save JPG/PNG (GIMP also writes WebP). 
IrfanView
Free Fast free viewer; opens WebP and batch-converts whole folders to JPG/PNG (File > Batch Conversion). 
Photos app (Windows 11)
Built-in Double-click the .webp - the built-in Photos app opens WebP (static and animated) on current Windows 11. Install 'Web Media Extensions' from the Store if it doesn't.
Any web browser (Edge/Chrome/Firefox)
Built-in Drag the .webp file onto an open browser tab (or Ctrl+O) to view it instantly, including animation. 
macOS2 apps
Preview / Photos
Built-in Double-click the .webp - macOS Preview and Photos open WebP natively (since macOS Big Sur, 2020). 
Linux3 apps
ImageMagick (with libwebp)
Open-source Command line: 'convert in.webp out.png' (or .jpg); great for batch jobs and scripts.
Squoosh
Free Google's in-browser image tool; drop a WebP in and export JPG/PNG/AVIF - runs client-side, nothing uploaded. Technical details
deep spec| Container format | RIFF (Resource Interchange File Format) |
| Compression modes | Lossy (VP8), lossless (VP8L), extended/animated (VP8X) |
| Lossy algorithm | VP8 intra-frame coding derived from the VP8 video codec |
| Lossless algorithm | VP8L - LZ77 backward references, Huffman coding and 2D color transforms |
| Color depth | 24-bit RGB (lossy/lossless); 32-bit RGBA when alpha is present |
| Alpha channel | 8-bit alpha plane, encoded separately as either lossy or lossless |
| Animation support | Yes - VP8X with ANIM/ANMF chunks; supports full-color animated sequences |
| Metadata support | Exif, XMP and ICC color profiles stored in VP8X extended chunks |
| Magic bytes | "RIFF" (52 49 46 46) at offset 0; "WEBP" (57 45 42 50) at offset 8 |
| MIME type | image/webp |
| Maximum dimensions | 16,383 × 16,383 pixels per frame |
| Color space (lossy) | YCbCr 4:2:0 (chroma subsampled), converted from/to sRGB |
| File size vs. JPEG | Lossy WebP is typically 25-34% smaller at equivalent visual quality |
| File size vs. PNG | Lossless WebP is typically 26% smaller than PNG for the same image |
| Reference encoder/decoder | `cwebp` / `dwebp` command-line tools from the open-source `libwebp` library |
| Released | 2010 (lossy); lossless + alpha added 2011; animation 2012 |
| Open standard | Yes · royalty-free |
| Specification | developers.google.com |
WEBP conversions
Community Q&A
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