What are TIFF and AVIF, and when should you convert to JPG

TIFF is the standard for print and scanning; AVIF is a new high-compression format—both often fail to open in browsers and chat apps. This article covers when to use each and how to avoid quality/color drift when converting to JPG.

Format conversion Author tdd8.cn

Both formats are "professional but not universal": TIFF is the standard in print and scanning, AVIF has the best compression of the newer formats, yet both regularly fail to open in browsers, chat apps and application portals.

1. TIFF: the veteran of print and scanning

TIFF supports lossless compression, multiple pages, layers and CMYK colour, and it is what scanners and print shops output by default. The downside is size: a single A4 colour scan at 300 DPI can hit 25 MB, and most web upload widgets will not accept it.

Convert when: sending to a client, uploading to a portal, dropping into a slide deck. TIFF to JPG defaults to quality 92, which takes a 25 MB A4 scan down to 1-2 MB while keeping text sharp. If the file is purely for archiving, keep the TIFF.

2. AVIF: the best compression available

At the same visual quality, AVIF is roughly half the size of JPG and about 70% of WebP. Compatibility is the catch: older Windows photo viewers, some Android devices and plenty of internal systems still cannot open it.

Practical rule: serve AVIF on your own site with a <picture> JPG fallback, and deliver JPG to everyone else. When converting camera AVIF exports, do not shrink the resolution along the way -- AVIF to JPG keeps the original pixel dimensions.

3. RAW is a different story

Camera RAW (CR2, NEF, ARW, DNG) is not an ordinary image: it stores raw sensor data and has to be "developed" before it becomes a picture. White balance and colour mapping are decided by the decoder, so different software produces noticeably different colours. If the exact on-site colour matters, use the camera maker's own software.

4. Three traps when converting

  • Colour shift: converting a CMYK TIFF straight to JPG shifts colours; convert to sRGB first;
  • Transparency turning black: JPG has no alpha channel, so transparent areas become black or white -- flatten onto a background first;
  • Lost metadata: EXIF shooting data can disappear during conversion; if you need it, use a tool that writes EXIF back.

5. How to choose, in one table

  • Print or archive -> TIFF / PNG
  • Fast page loads and modern browsers are fine -> AVIF / WebP
  • Must open anywhere, on any system -> JPG

FAQ

Does JPG conversion lose quality?

JPG is lossy, but 92+ is visually lossless; keep the TIFF original for print.

Is AVIF better than WebP?

Smaller at equal quality, but less compatible; for public pages also offer a JPG fallback.

Can I batch convert?

Yes—local tools accept many at once; server tools process per image, good for large singles.

Tools used in this guide

TIFF to JPGScans to JPG AVIF to JPGNew format compatible RAW to JPGCamera raw to JPG
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