Guide

How to make PNG files smaller (and when it works)

PNG is lossless, so there is no quality dial like JPG has. Screenshots and logos with flat colour compress very well. Photos saved as PNG are large, and the honest answer for those is to switch format.

Two ways to shrink a PNG

Lossless: every pixel stays exactly the same. Gains are modest, often a few percent to a quarter off, depending on the image.
Fewer colours: the image is reduced to a limited palette. Screenshots, charts and flat illustrations can drop by half or more with little visible change. Gradients and photos can show banding, so check the preview. This tool keeps every pixel instead: it does not reduce colours, so for big savings use its resize or target-size options, or switch format.

How to use this tool for PNG

Choose PNG as the output. PNG output is always lossless: every pixel stays exactly the same and transparency is kept, and the quality slider does not change PNG output. To make a PNG smaller, use the resize option, or set a target size and let the tool reduce the pixel size in steps.

When to convert instead

If a PNG is a photograph and does not need transparency, converting to JPG or WebP usually gives a far smaller file. If it needs transparency, WebP supports it and is usually smaller than PNG. See how to convert PNG to WebP.

Limits

Animated PNGs are not supported and only the first frame is read. Metadata is removed. Check the result before replacing an original, especially for logos you need exact.

Try it now

The free Image Compressor handles 25 images at a time, with no signup and no upload.

Open the free Image Compressor