.WEBP

How to Open a WEBP File

To view a WEBP, open it in a current web browser or a compatible photo app. Use the viewer below to preview it locally, or convert it to JPG/PNG if another app or upload form rejects WEBP. For animated images, choose a viewer that supports animation; exporting a still image does not preserve movement.

Guide by the File-Extension.com team — see our methods and tool limitations. Updated .

Category: Raster image / photo Developer: Google MIME type: image/webp Native support: Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari

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How to open a WEBP file on WindowsHow to open a WEBP file on Mac, iPhone & AndroidOpen a WEBP File Online

Open a WEBP File Online

Drop a .webp file below. It previews right in this page — including animated WebP — since your browser decodes it natively. You'll also get real technical details read straight from the file's own RIFF container: whether it's lossy, lossless or animated, its true dimensions, transparency, and any embedded ICC/EXIF/XMP metadata.

🔒 Nothing is uploaded — your file never leaves this device

On this page

  1. Open a WEBP file online (tool)
  2. Quick answer
  3. What is a WEBP file?
  4. Open on Windows
  5. Open on Mac, iPhone & Android
  6. Chrome saved my image as WEBP
  7. Paint, Photoshop & GIMP support
  8. Animated WEBP files
  9. WEBP vs JPG vs PNG vs AVIF
  10. Common problems & fixes
  11. Related file extensions
  12. Technical references
  13. FAQ

What is a WEBP file?

WEBP is an image format created by Google, designed specifically to make web pages load faster. It's built on RIFF, the same general-purpose chunked container format used by WAV audio and AVI video files, and inside that container it can hold one of three very different kinds of image data:

  • Lossy (VP8): compressed similarly to JPG, using the VP8 video codec's intra-frame coding — typically smaller than an equivalent-quality JPG.
  • Lossless (VP8L): pixel-perfect like PNG, with full alpha transparency — typically smaller than an equivalent PNG.
  • Extended (VP8X): a wrapper used whenever the image needs animation, an alpha channel alongside lossy compression, or embedded ICC/EXIF/XMP metadata.

That's exactly what this page's tool reads directly from the file's chunk structure — not guessed from the extension — in addition to asking your browser to decode and display the actual image.

How to open a WEBP file on Windows

  1. Open it directly in Chrome, Edge or Firefox — just drag the file into a browser tab, or double-click it if a browser is set as the default handler.
  2. Windows 11 shows WebP thumbnails and previews in File Explorer and Photos out of the box. On Windows 10, install the free "Web Media Extensions" from the Microsoft Store for the same support.
  3. Use the tool on this page for a preview (including animation) plus real technical details — nothing installs, nothing is uploaded.

How to open a WEBP file on Mac, iPhone & Android

  1. Mac (macOS Big Sur or later): Double-click the file — it opens in Preview automatically.
  2. iPhone/iPad: Safari and the Photos app display WebP images natively on recent iOS versions; if a specific app doesn't, open the file in Safari instead.
  3. Android: Chrome and most modern photo galleries display WebP natively — Android has supported it as a save/share format for years.
  4. Any platform: the tool on this page works identically everywhere a modern browser runs.

Chrome saved my image as WEBP — how do I get a JPG or PNG?

This is the most common way people end up with a .webp file. Many websites, online shops and image CDNs check what your browser can display and, because every current browser accepts WEBP, send that instead of the JPG or PNG the page was designed with. When you right-click and choose Save image as…, Chrome (and Edge, Firefox or Safari) simply saves the file it actually received. There is no browser setting to change the format, but there are several quick ways around it:

Chrome's right-click menu on a web image: "Save image as…" keeps whatever format the site served, which is often WEBP.
  1. Convert after saving: drop the .webp into the tool above (or the dedicated WEBP to JPG and WEBP to PNG converters) and download a JPG or PNG. Nothing is uploaded.
  2. Re-save in Paint (Windows): open the .webp in Paint, then use File > Save as and pick JPEG or PNG.
  3. Export in Preview (Mac): open the file, choose File > Export, and set Format to JPEG or PNG.
  4. Copy and paste: "Copy image" in the browser, then paste straight into Word, Google Docs, an email or an image editor — the pasted picture isn't a .webp file at all.
  5. Browser extension: if you do this often, extensions such as "Save image as Type" add a right-click option to save web images directly as JPG or PNG.
Don't just rename photo.webp to photo.jpg. The data inside is still WEBP, so apps that need a real JPG (upload forms, printers, older editors) will still reject it — convert it instead.

Open and edit WEBP in Paint, Photos, Photoshop & GIMP

AppWEBP support
Windows Photos & PaintOpen WEBP on Windows 11 out of the box; on Windows 10 after installing Web Media Extensions. Paint can then re-save as JPG or PNG.
Adobe PhotoshopOpens and saves WEBP natively since version 23.2 (early 2022). Older versions needed Google's free WebPShop plugin.
GIMPOpens and exports WEBP natively, including animated WEBP (each frame becomes a layer).
Mac Preview & PhotosOpen WEBP on macOS Big Sur and later; Preview can export to JPEG, PNG and other formats.
Command line (libwebp)dwebp decodes to PNG, cwebp creates WEBP, webpmux inspects and edits containers.

Google's free libwebp tools are the most reliable way to convert on any platform, and they're handy for batch jobs:

Converting WEBP to PNG with Google's dwebp tool from the libwebp package, for one file or a whole folder.

Animated WEBP files: play, save frames or convert to GIF

A .webp that moves in the browser but appears frozen elsewhere is an animated WEBP. Browsers play it natively, but many desktop viewers and editors only show the first frame, and some upload forms reject it outright. Drop it into the tool above to confirm: it reports the real frame count read from the file.

  • Just to watch it: drag the file into a Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari tab.
  • Turn it into a GIF: ImageMagick can do it in one step (magick animation.webp animation.gif), or open it in GIMP and export as GIF with "As animation" ticked. Expect the GIF to be noticeably larger and limited to 256 colors per frame.
  • Get the individual frames: libwebp's anim_dump tool writes every frame out as a separate image, and webpmux -info lists the frame count and canvas size.
  • Make one: gif2webp converts an existing GIF to animated WEBP, usually at a much smaller size.

WEBP vs JPG vs PNG vs AVIF

All four store a compressed photo, but differ in codec, features and how widely they're supported:

  • JPG — oldest, universally supported, lossy only, no transparency. Least efficient of the four.
  • PNG — universally supported, lossless only, full transparency, but files are large.
  • WEBP — Google's format, can be lossy or lossless in the same container, supports transparency and animation, usually smaller than JPG or PNG at equivalent quality. Native support is now essentially universal.
  • AVIF — newer, AV1-based, usually the smallest of all four at equivalent quality, and also natively supported everywhere current — but tooling and editor support is a bit less mature than WebP's.

For a side-by-side table that also covers HEIC and recommendations for the web, printing and screenshots, see which image format is best.

Common WEBP file problems and how to fix them

Photo shows as a broken-image icon

This is unusual for WebP since support is so broad, but it can happen in an outdated browser or older image-editing software. Update your browser, or convert the file to JPG using the tool on this page.

"Unsupported file type" when uploading to a website

Some websites, printers and content management systems still only accept JPG or PNG uploads. Convert the file first with the tool above, then upload the converted copy.

The animation doesn't play in an older program

Animated WebP support in desktop editors lags behind browsers. Check for a recent update, or use the tool above to grab a single frame as a static JPG/PNG.

Technical references

WebP's container and codec are defined by Google in specifications published on the WebmProject site.

Frequently asked questions

What program opens a .webp file?

Every current major browser — Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari — opens a .webp file directly, since WebP decoding (including animated WebP) is built in natively. On Windows 11, File Explorer and the Photos app show WebP thumbnails and previews out of the box; Windows 10 may need the free "Web Media Extensions" from the Microsoft Store. On Mac, Preview and Photos support WebP from macOS Big Sur onward.

Is WEBP the same as JPG or PNG?

No, but it can replace either. WebP supports two very different modes: lossy (similar tradeoffs to JPG, but usually smaller at the same quality) and lossless (similar to PNG, with full transparency support, but usually smaller). A single .webp file uses only one of these modes — this page's tool tells you which one your file actually is.

Can a WEBP file be animated, like a GIF?

Yes. Animated WebP works like an animated GIF but with much better compression, full transparency, and no 256-color limit. It stores a series of frames inside "ANMF" chunks in the same container. This page's tool detects animation and reports the real frame count read from the file.

Why won't a website or app accept my WEBP upload?

Some websites, content management systems, printers and older editing tools still only accept JPG or PNG. Convert the file first using the tool on this page, then upload the converted copy.

Why does Chrome save images as WEBP instead of JPG?

Because that's the file the website actually sent. Many sites and image CDNs detect that your browser supports WEBP and deliver it in place of JPG or PNG to make pages load faster. Save image as keeps the file exactly as received, so you get a .webp. Convert it afterwards, or copy and paste the image instead of saving it.

How do I stop images from downloading as WEBP?

No major browser has a setting for this, since the website decides which format to send. The practical options are a browser extension that saves images as JPG or PNG directly, copying and pasting the image instead of saving it, or converting the saved .webp with the tool on this page.

Can Photoshop open WEBP files?

Yes. Adobe Photoshop has opened and saved WEBP natively since version 23.2, released in early 2022. If an older Photoshop shows the file as unsupported, update it, install Google's WebPShop plugin, or convert the WEBP to PNG first.

How do I convert an animated WEBP to a GIF?

Open it in GIMP and export as GIF with the As animation option ticked, or run magick animation.webp animation.gif with ImageMagick. The GIF will usually be larger and limited to 256 colors per frame. Online converters also work but upload the file.

Is it safe to open a WEBP file?

Yes, as long as your software is up to date. In 2023 a serious flaw in libwebp, the library most apps use to decode WEBP, was exploited through malicious images, and it was patched in all major browsers and operating systems shortly after. Keeping your browser, OS and image apps updated protects you; a .webp file can't run code by itself.

Last updated October 1, 2026.