AVIF
A cutting-edge format from the AV1 codec. Surpasses JPEG and WebP in compression with HDR support.
AVIF (AV1 Image File Format) is an open, royalty-free format by the Alliance for Open Media. It applies AV1 video codec intra-frame compression to still images (spec 2019). Google, Mozilla, Apple, and Netflix participate in AOMedia.
AVIF is among the more compression-efficient formats in current use - at equivalent quality it can yield smaller files than JPEG or WebP, though the margin varies with image content and encoder settings. It excels at low bitrates where other formats show artifacts, benefiting mobile environments.
- HDR and wide gamut: 10/12-bit depth with BT.2020 and Display P3, beyond sRGB
- Advanced compression: 128x128 superblocks, 67 intra prediction modes, DCT/ADST/Identity combinations
- Alpha channel: Full transparency support
- Animation: Animated sequences supported
The challenge is encoding speed - AV1 computation is considerably heavier than JPEG, requiring pre-encoded assets. Browser support includes Chrome, Firefox, Safari (iOS 16+), with <picture> fallback for older environments.