TIFF vs JPG
TIFF is for archiving and print, JPG for everything else. TIFF can be lossless and keeps 16-bit colour, which is why scanners and print shops use it; JPG is a fraction of the size and opens everywhere. Keep the TIFF as your master copy and send JPG.
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Choose TIFF when
- Archiving scans and photographs at full quality.
- Sending files to a printer or publisher who asks for TIFF.
- Images you will keep editing at 16 bits per channel.
Choose JPG when
- Email, web pages, social media and upload forms.
- Viewing on any device.
- Anywhere a file size limit applies.
What TIFF actually is
TIFF is less a single format than a container that can hold almost anything: uncompressed pixels, lossless compression, several pages in one file, sixteen bits per channel, and colour profiles for print. That flexibility is why it survives in scanning, publishing and archival work.
Because TIFF can contain many different compressions, a file that one program writes is occasionally one another program cannot read. Converting it to PNG settles the argument.
What JPG actually is
JPG discards detail your eye is least likely to notice, then compresses what is left. The quality setting decides how much it discards. It is the reason photographs on the web are measured in hundreds of kilobytes rather than tens of megabytes.
Re-saving a JPG repeatedly degrades it every time, because it re-encodes from the already damaged version. Edit from the original, and export to JPG once at the end.
TIFF and JPG side by side
| TIFF | JPG | |
|---|---|---|
| Extension | .tiff | .jpg |
| Media type | image/tiff | image/jpeg |
| Compression | Lossless | Lossy |
| Transparency | Yes | No |
| Animation | No | No |
| Quality setting | Not applicable | Yes |
| We can write it | Yes | Yes |
Questions
Is TIFF better quality than JPG?
It can be: a TIFF is usually lossless and can hold more colour depth. For viewing on a screen, a high-quality JPG looks the same.
How much smaller is a JPG than a TIFF?
Typically ten times or more for a photograph. An uncompressed 12-megapixel TIFF is about 36 MB; a high-quality JPG of it is about 3 to 5 MB.