Some users are stating that Google Chrome is saving images in the WebP format, and that is not ideal for them. They would prefer if this were done in other formats such as JPEG or PNG, so what to do? Well, we are certain that Google Chrome is not saving every image download in WebP. You see, some websites deliver WebP images instead of the preferred options, and that is due to the nature of WebP. If you wish, you can stop Google Chrome from saving photos in the WebP image format.
The WebP image format is natively supported in Google Chrome, and other web browsers such as Firefox, Edge, and Opera, along with other tools and software libraries. Google switched over to the WebP image format in order to reduce the size of photos on the web. The idea is to help websites load faster than they do now in a bid to give users a better experience, especially those who do not have a high-speed internet connection.
How to stop Chrome from saving images as WebP format
If you want to stop Google Chrome from saving images in WebP file format, you have the following options:
- Use Save Image as Type extension
- Use the Paint app on Windows
- Use image converters
1] Use Save Image as Type extension
Let us make something very clear here. Google Chrome does not convert images to other formats. As stated above, if Chrome saves a photo as WebP, then it has everything to do with the image format provided by the website where the photo was originally downloaded.
To get around this issue, we are going to use a Chrome extension known as Save Image as Type.
- Open the Google Chrome web browser, then navigate to the official Chrome Store.
- Search for Save Images as Type extension and download it to the browser.
- Once downloaded and installed, all you have to do is right-click on a photo and select Save Image as Type from the context menu.
- Choose your format of choice from the available list.
- The extension will automatically convert it to that format when saving it to your computer.
2] Use the Paint app on Windows
Now, if the above options fail to work as intended, you can make use of the default Paint app that comes with Windows 11. Let us discuss how to get this done in the best way possible.
- First, you must right-click on the image available on the website.
- Select the Copy Image option.
- OK, launch the Paint app promptly.
- From there, press CTRL + V to paste the copied photo into the app.
- Look to the top-left corner of the screen.
- Click the File tab right away.
- A drop-down menu will appear.
- Click on Save As, then choose the desired format.
3] Use image converters
Another way to solve the problem of WebP images downloaded by Google Chrome is to use specialized image converters that convert WebP images to PNG and JPG with WebP. Alternatively, you could use free tools to convert WebP to PNG online.
That’s it, you’ve officially solved the WebP problem with Google Chrome, and with relative ease.
