How to Compress an Image Without Losing Quality (2026)
Last updated:
Quick Answer
True lossless compression reduces file size 10–30% without any quality change (PNG optimization, metadata stripping). "Visually lossless" JPG at quality 90 cuts size 40–60% with no visible difference. FileCurve supports both — upload your image, pick "Lossless" for PNG or quality 90 for JPG/WebP.
Step-by-step
- 1
Upload your image to FileCurve Image Compressor.
- 2
For PNG: choose "Lossless optimize" — strips metadata and optimizes encoding, typically 10–30% smaller.
- 3
For JPG: set quality to 90 — visually identical, usually 40–60% smaller than straight export.
- 4
For maximum savings with no visible loss: convert to WebP at quality 90 — another 25% smaller than JPG.
- 5
Compare before/after on a real screen. At these settings, no human can tell the difference.
- 6
Download.
Expected output
Format
PNG (true lossless) or JPG/WebP at quality 90 (visually lossless)
Quality setting
PNG lossless / JPG 90 / WebP 90
Estimated size
PNG: 10–30% savings / JPG 90: 40–60% savings / WebP 90: 50–70% savings
Why you might need this
- →Portfolio photography websites (need full quality)
- →Print-quality images for digital delivery
- →Product photography for e-commerce (tiny savings × many images = huge bandwidth)
- →Archive copies where quality must be preserved
Troubleshooting
I want zero quality loss, not just "visually lossless"
Use PNG with palette optimization, or WebP lossless mode. True-lossless JPG does not exist — JPG is always lossy.
Compressed file is larger than original
Your source is already optimized. No further savings available without switching format (e.g. PNG → WebP lossless).
Frequently asked questions
Is JPG quality 90 really lossless?
Not technically — but the difference from the uncompressed original is below human perception threshold. For all practical purposes, yes.
Is PNG compression ever lossy?
Palette reduction (indexed PNG) is lossy. Default PNG optimization (zlib, metadata strip) is 100% lossless.
What is WebP lossless?
A mode where WebP preserves every pixel exactly, typically 25–35% smaller than PNG. Supported in all modern browsers.
Does FileCurve strip EXIF data?
Yes by default — removes GPS, camera model, etc. This gives privacy plus a few KB of savings.