How to open WebP images in Windows

Learn how to open WebP images on Windows. As you may know, WebP is a relatively new image format, and native support for it is not available in the default Windows operating system. It’s worth noting that as technology evolves and WebP gains more popularity, native support for the format may become more widespread in Windows and its default applications.

What is WebP?

WebP is an image format developed by Google that aims to provide high-quality image compression with smaller file sizes compared to other popular formats like JPEG and PNG. It employs both lossy and lossless compression techniques to achieve efficient image compression.

WebP supports a wide range of features, including transparency, animated images, and metadata support. It uses advanced compression algorithms, such as predictive coding and entropy encoding, to reduce the file size while maintaining good image quality.

One of the main advantages of WebP is its ability to significantly reduce the size of images without noticeable loss in visual quality. This can lead to faster loading times for web pages and reduced bandwidth usage, resulting in improved overall website performance.

However, it’s worth noting that WebP is not as widely supported as other image formats. While modern web browsers like Chrome, Firefox, and Opera can natively display WebP images, older browsers may require additional support or fallback options. Additionally, some image editing tools and content management systems may have limited support for WebP.

There are a few ways to work with WebP images on Windows:

Web browsers: Most modern web browsers like Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge, and Opera support WebP natively. This means you can view WebP images directly in these browsers without any additional plugins or software.

Image viewers and editors: While Windows Photo Viewer and Paint do not support WebP by default, you can use third-party image viewers and editors that offer WebP support. Some popular options include IrfanView, XnView, and GIMP. These tools allow you to open, view, and edit WebP images on Windows.

Plugins and codecs: To enable native WebP support in Windows applications, you can install plugins or codecs. For example, the WebP Codec for Windows from the Google Developers website provides support for viewing WebP images in Windows Photo Viewer and various other applications that use Windows Imaging Component (WIC).

To be able to view and open .webp images in Windows you just have to download that executable from the following link: WebP Codecs Utility for Windows and install it.The installation program includes the codecs themselves and also sample images to be able to test if it works. Once installed, we will only have to open the image with the Windows photo viewer and we will be able to see any file in .WebP format without problems