This tutorial explains what is a WebP file type and how to open WebP file using various apps. Learn to save .webp images as JPEG or PNG using browsers, MS Paint, command prompt, etc:
Often when you download an image, it comes with a WEBP extension and you cannot open it with your regular applications. So, what do you do then?
We are here to answer most of your questions about WEBP files, if not all.
Table of Contents:
What Is A WEBP File
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Google has developed this file format to reduce the image size without compromising the quality. Thus, a good WebP image takes a lesser storage space as compared to the images with other file extensions of the same quality. These are designed to make the images smaller and richer for developer use, in turn, making the web faster.
WebP is basically a derivative WebM video format that contains both lossless and lossy compression image data. It can reduce the file size up to 34% of the size of JPEG and PNG images without compromising on the quality.
The compression process is based on the pixels predictions from the surrounding blocks, hence the pixels are used multiple times in a file. WebP also supports animated images and is still under the development of Google. Hence, you can expect some great things from this file format.
How To Open WebP File
As we have mentioned above, WebP is developed by Google and is royalty-free. And you might be having a lot of software and applications on your computer integrated with WebP. It is almost indistinguishable from PNG and JPEG and you can save it like you save any other image from the Internet by right-clicking on it and clicking on “Save Image As”.
Apps To Open A .WebP File
The apps are enlisted below:
#1) Adobe Photoshop
In this section, we will tell you how to open WebP file in photoshop. To open a .webp file in Adobe Photoshop, you will need a plugin.
Installing On Windows:
- Download the WebP for Photoshop
- Copy ‘WebPShop.8bi’ from bin\WebPShop_0_3_0_Win_x64 to the photoshop installation folder.
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- Restart Photoshop and you should be able to see WebP files in the Open and Save menu.
Installing On Mac:
- Download the WebP for Photoshop
- Copy WebPShop.plugin from bin/WebPShop_0_3_0_Mac_x64 to the photoshop installation folder
- Restart Photoshop and you should be able to see WebP files in the Open and Save menu.
Price: $20.99/month
#2) Google Chrome
Chrome is a browser from Google that you can use to open the .WebP file.
Follow these steps:
- Go to the WebP file you want to open.
- Double click on the file.
- It will automatically open with Google Chrome.
If not,
- Go to the .WebP file
- Right-click on it.
- Select ‘Open With’
- Select Google Chrome
- Click on OK
Price: Free
Website: Google Chrome
#3) Mozilla Firefox
Mozilla Firefox is yet another browser that you can use to open the WebP file.
To open the WebP file format in Firefox, follow the steps below:
- Go to the file you want to open
- Right-click on it
- Select ‘Open With’
- Click on Firefox.
The file will open in the Firefox browser.
Price: Free
Website: Mozilla Firefox
#4) Microsoft Edge
Microsoft Edge is a cross-platform browser from Microsoft, which is a helpful tool for opening a WebP file.
Follow the steps below:
- Go to the file you want to open
- Right-click on it
- Select ‘Open With’
- Click on Microsoft Edge
You will be able to see your WebP file format nice and clear.
Price: Free
Website: Microsoft Edge
#5) Opera
You can open the .WebP file type with this Chromium-based browser as well.
Follow the steps below:
- Go to the file you want to open
- Right-click on it
- Select ‘Open With’
- Click on Microsoft Edge
Price: Free
Website: Opera
#6) Paintshop Pro
To open WebP file in Paintshop Pro, follow these steps:
- Launch Paintshop Pro
- Go to Open File
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- Select the WebP file you want to open
- Click on it to open it.
Price: $58.19
Website: Paintshop Pro
#7) File Viewer Plus
File viewer plus allows you to open and convert varieties of file types, including WebP.
Follow the steps below:
- Download and install file viewer plus.
- Go to Files
- Select Open
- Navigate to the WebP file you want to open
- Click on it
- It should open in File viewer plus.
Or,
- Go to the .WebP file you want to open
- Right-click on it
- Select ‘Open With’
- Click on File Viewer Plus
- If you don’t find it there, click on More Options
- Then select File Viewer Plus.
Price: $54.98
Website: File Viewer Plus
How To Save WebP Images As JPEG Or PNG
Using A Browser
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You might sometimes encounter an issue opening a .WebP file. So, you might want to save them in JPEG or convert the. webp file to .png format.
- Go to the webpage with WebP image
- Highlight the URL and copy it
- Launch a browser that doesn’t support WebP
- Paste the link there and hit enter
- With the proper server-side conversion, the page will appear to be the same, except the images will be in either JPEG or PNG format.
- Right-click on the image and select ‘Save As’.
With MS Paint
You can use MS Paint to convert the WebP images into JPEG or PNG.
- Right-click on the image you want to convert
- Select ‘Open With’
- Select Choose default programs
- Click on More Options
- Select Paint
- When the image opens in Paint, Click on File
- Select ‘Save As’
- Choose the format you want to save your WebP image in
- Click ‘Save
Online Conversion
You can always use online conversion tools to convert WebP files to jpg or any format you want.
- Launch an online converter tool like Online-convert, Cloudconvert, Zamzar, etc.
- Every conversion tool works a little d.ifferently, but the process is similar.
- Select the file you want to convert
- Pick the output format
- Click on Convert
- When the file is converted, select download.
Using Command Line
Using a Command line is tricky. So, sticking to web conversion or using Paint is advisable unless you know how to use a command line.
- Go to the folder with the .webp file you want to convert
- Hold Windows and R keys down together.
- Type cmd in the search bar and hit enter
- This will open the command prompt
- It should look like C:\users\NAME\
- Replace Name with your Windows user name
- Use the dwebp.exe command to convert a WebP image.
- The Syntax should look like C:\Path\To\dwebp.exe inputFile.webp -o outputFile
- You can leave the output file blank or put the filename and the desired extension after -o
- Hit enter and the converted file will be saved on your system.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can use file converters, both offline and online or use Paint.
Yes, it can be converted by using file converters.
Yes. WebP image file sizes are smaller as compared to both of them, thus saving the storage, while providing better transparency and quality in the images.
No. Chrome 4 to 8, Mozilla Firefox browser version 2 to 61, IE browser version 6 to 11, Opera version 10.1, these are just a few browsers that don’t support WebP.
No, Apple’s browser Safari doesn’t support WebP.
Yes, you can convert a WebP file to GIF with file converters.
Conclusion
WebP images aren’t as complicated as they sound. You can easily open them in any supporting browsers. And you can always convert them into any other format, like JPEG or PNG. So, if you have downloaded a file and it says .webp, don’t worry. You can work with it as you work with any other common file format.