Image Optimizer

compress-image

How to Optimize Imagesfor the Web's Performance without losing Quality

Did you know that optimizing your images before uploading to WordPress could have a huge impact on the speed of your site?

When beginning a new blog lots of novices simply upload photos without optimizing them for web. Large images can slow your website slower.

You can solve this problem by making use of photo optimizationbest methods in your regular blogging routine.

The following article in this article, we will teach you how to optimize your images for faster web performance without losing quality. Additionally, we will share automated photo optimization applications for WordPress that will simplify your life.

Since this is a comprehensive guide to image optimization for web We have designed an easy-to-follow table of contents:

• What exactly is optimization? (optimized images vs. images that aren't optimized)
• Why is image optimization crucial? What are the advantages?
• How do I store and optimize images for web performance?
• The best image optimization software and tools
• The top photo optimization WordPress plugins WordPress

What is Image Optimization? (Optimized vs Unoptimized Images)

Image optimization is a method of saving and delivering images in the smallest file size without reducing the overall quality of the image.

While it may sound like a complex process the process is actually fairly easy today. It is possible to use one of the many image optimization tools and plugins that automatically compress images by at least 80% without any visible decrease in image quality.

Here's an example of an optimized against unoptimized image

You can observe, when optimized correctly, the same image can be 75% smaller than the original picture without any quality loss.

What is Image Optimization work?

In simple words simple terms, image optimization work by using compression technology like "Lossy" and "Lossless" which can reduce overall size of the file without causing any reduction in quality.

What does it mean to optimize Images?

If you ever received a recommendation to optimize images from your WordPress hosting support team or the speed test tool, then it is that you have to decrease the file size of your images by optimizing them for web.

Why is Image Optimization Important? What are the Benefits of Image Optimization?

There are many advantages of optimizing your pictures, these are the top benefits to know:

• Website speed faster
• Improvements in SEO rankings
• A higher overall conversion rate for leads and sales
• Lower storage and bandwidth (which will reduce hosting and CDN cost)
• Speedier backups of websites (also reduces the cost of backup storage)

Beyond video, pictures are the second most hefty item that a website page can host. The HTTP archive says that according to HTTP archive the images account for on average 21% of the total weight of the page.

We know that websites with fast speeds rank higher in search engines (SEO) and are able to achieve better conversions and image optimization is a necessity for every business website must perform in order to be successful online.

Perhaps you are wondering how much difference can image optimization really make?

According to the findings of a Strangeloop study, one-second delay in the loading of websites can result in a loss of 7 percent or sales. Additionally, it can result in 11 percent fewer pageviews, and a 16% reduction in customer satisfaction.

If none of these reasons are enough to speed up your website and increase your traffic, you must know that search engines such as Google also offer preferential SEO preference to faster-loading sites.

This means that by optimizing your images for the web that you can boost website speed and boost WordPress SEO positions.

Video Tutorial

If you'd prefer written instructions, just keep reading.

How to Save and Optimize Images for Web Performance?

The key to successful photo optimization for web performance is to find the perfect equilibrium between the lowest file size and acceptable quality of the image.

Three factors which play a major impact on image optimization are:

• Image file format (JPEG vs PNG vs GIF vs tiff )
• Compression (Higher compression = smaller file size)
• Image Dimensions (height and width)

By choosing the right combination of the three you can reduce your image's size up to 80%.

Let's go over each one in more specifics.

1. Image File Format

For most website owners, the only three images formats that really require attention can be described as JPEG, PNG, and GIF. Picking the right type of file plays an important role in image optimization.

To make things easy In order to keep things simple, use JPEGs for images or photos with lots of colors, PNGs for simple images or for transparent images, and GIF for animated images only.

For those who aren't sure of the difference between each file type, the format of PNG images is uncompressed which means it's a much higher-quality image. The disadvantage is that it's file sizes are much larger.

On the other hand, JPEG is a compressed file format that slightly decreases the quality of images to deliver a substantially smaller size file.

While GIF only supports 256 colors together with lossless compression, which makes it the best option in animated image.

On WPBeginner we employ all three image formats , based on the kind of image.

2. Compression

The second thing to consider is image compression, which plays an enormous part when it comes to image optimization.

There are different kinds and levels of image compression available. The settings for each will vary depending on the image compression tool that you use.

A majority of image editing tools, such as Adobe Photoshop, On1 Photo, GIMP, Affinity Photo and others include built-in features for image compression.

You can also save images normally and then use a web tool like TinyPNG , or JPEG Mini for easier image compression.

Although it's quite manual the two methods will allow you to compress images prior uploading the images to WordPress as well, which is what we do on WPBeginner.

There are many other popular WordPress plugins like Optimole, EWWW Image Optimizer, and others that can automatically compress images when they are uploaded for the first time. Many beginners and even large companies choose to utilize these images optimization plugins due to the fact that it is simple to use and is convenient.

We'll explain more about these WordPress plugins in the next article.

3. Image Dimensions

Normally when you download a photograph from your phone or digital camera an extremely high resolution as well as large file dimensions (height and width).

Most often, these images have a resolution of 300 DPI and sizes ranging from 2000 pixels or more. The high-quality photos are perfect for desktop or print printing. They are not appropriate for use on websites.

Sizing down the dimensions of files to something acceptable can dramatically reduce the size of your images. Resize images using the software for editing images on your computer.

For instance, we optimized a photo with 1.8 megabytes original size with a 300 DPI resolution, and image dimensions of 4900x3200 pixels.

We decided to use the jpeg format for greater compression. We then changed the dimensions of 1200x795 pixels. it reduced the image's size to 103 KB. That's 94% less than the original file size.

After you have a better understanding of the three key elements in image optimization, let's take a look at the various image optimization tools for website owners.

Best ImageOptimization Tools and Programs

As we have mentioned previously, the majority of image editing software comes with image optimization as well as compression options.

Outside of the software for editing images, there are many powerful , free image optimization tools you can utilize to make your images more attractive for the websites (with just few clicks).

We suggest using these tools to enhance images before uploading them to WordPress especially if you are an obsessive.

This approach helps you conserve the disk space of your WordPress hosting account, and will guarantee your image is the most speedy and has the finest quality because you manually look over each image.

Adobe Photoshop

Adobe Photoshop is a premium software with a feature to save images designed specifically for the web. Simply open the image, then select"File" and then select the "File >> Save for Web" option.

This will open a brand new dialog box. To the right, you can select different image formats. For JPEG format, you will see different quality options. When you select the quality option the program will indicate the file's dimensions on the bottom left.

GIMP

GIMP is a no-cost and open source alternative to Adobe Photoshop. It can be used to help you optimize your images for web use. Its disadvantage is that it's not as simple to implement as other methods on this list.

The first step is to open the image in GIMP and then click File >> Export As option. This will show the dialog box for saving your file. You can give your file a new name and then hit"Export.

This will present image export options. For jpeg files, you can select the compression option to reduce the size of the file. In the end, you can click on"export button" in order for you to save an optimized picture file.

TinyPNG

TinyPNG is a no-cost web application that employs a clever lossy compression technique to reduce in size your PNG images. All you need to do is go to their website and upload your photos (simple drag & drop).

They will compress the image, and give you the download link. You can make use of their sister websitecalled TinyJPG which is for JPEG compressing images.

There is also Extensions for Adobe Photoshop that we use to complete our image editing process since it blends the best of TinyJPG with TinyPNG within Photoshop.

For developers, they have an API that allows you to convert images instantly, while for beginners , they have a WordPress plugin that will automatically convert images for you (more on this later).

JPEG Mini

JPEGmini uses a lossless compression technique that significantly reduces the size of pictures without having an impact on their visual quality. You can also test the quality of the original image with the compression image.

You can use their web version for free or purchase the application to run on your personal computer. They also offer a paid API to automate the process on your server.

ImageOptim

ImageOptim is an Mac program that allows users the compression of images with no losing any quality, by locating the optimal compression parameters and removal of unnecessary color profiles.

Windows option to do this would be Trimage.

Best Image Optimization Plugins for WordPress

We believe that the most effective way to improve the quality of your images is to optimize them prior to uploading images to WordPress. However, if you manage an online site with multiple authors or require an easy solution then you could consider using the WordPress plugin for image compression.

Below is our selection of the best WordPress photo compression plug-ins.

1. Optimole an extremely popular plugin created by the Team behind ThemeIsle.
2. EWWW Image Optimizer
3. Compress JPEG & PNG images using the plugin developed by the TinyPNG team mentioned above in the article.
4. Imagify is a plugin developed by the popular WP Rocket plugin team.
5. ShortPixel Image Optimizer
6. WP Smush
7. reSmush.it

Utilizing any among these WordPress image optimization plugins will allow you to accelerate your website.

Final Thoughts and Best Practices for Image Optimization

If you're not saving images optimized for webuse, then you need to start doing that now. It'll make a significant difference on your site speed and your users will thank you for it.

Furthermore, speedier websites are excellent for SEO, and you will likely see an increase in your search engine rankings.

Use this tool to convert to png