JPEG Quality Settings: What Number Should You Use?
JPEG compression uses a quality scale — typically 0 to 100 — to control the tradeoff between file size and image quality. But what do these numbers actually mean, and which one should you use? Here's a practical breakdown.
What the Quality Scale Means
The JPEG quality setting controls how aggressively the DCT (Discrete Cosine Transform) compression algorithm quantizes image data. At lower quality settings, more detail is discarded, producing smaller files with visible artifacts. At higher settings, more data is preserved, producing larger files with less (or no) visible loss.
Quality Level Breakdown
| Quality | Typical File Size | Visual Quality | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| 95–100% | Very large (3–8 MB) | Near-perfect / lossless-looking | Print, archiving, master files |
| 85–90% | Large (1–3 MB) | Excellent, no visible loss | Professional photos, client deliverables |
| 75–80% | Medium (200–600 KB) | Very good, minor artifacts on close inspection | Web photos, blog images (recommended) |
| 60–70% | Small (80–200 KB) | Acceptable, some visible compression | Thumbnails, previews |
| 40–55% | Very small (40–80 KB) | Noticeable degradation | Placeholder images only |
| Below 40% | Tiny | Significant quality loss | Avoid for most uses |
The Sweet Spot: 80% Quality
For the vast majority of web images, 80% quality is the optimal setting. Here's why:
- Files are typically 60–70% smaller than a 100% quality JPEG
- Quality loss is virtually invisible at normal viewing distances and screen resolutions
- Google's own Lighthouse tool recommends 85% or lower for web images
- Major image hosting services (Facebook, Twitter) re-compress to around 70–80% internally
Why Quality Isn't Linear
JPEG quality is not a linear scale. The difference in file size between 95% and 85% is much larger than the difference between 85% and 75% — but the quality difference is the reverse: you can barely see the difference between 75% and 95%, but the file sizes are dramatically different. The returns diminish quickly above 85%.
Quality Settings for Specific Use Cases
- Photography portfolio / client delivery: 90–95%
- Website hero images: 80–85%
- Blog post images: 75–80%
- E-commerce product photos: 80–85% (quality matters for purchasing decisions)
- Social media: 85% before upload (platforms will re-compress anyway)
- Email newsletter images: 75–80%
- App icon / thumbnail: 70–75%
Should You Use WebP Instead?
If you're compressing images for a website, WebP is often a better choice than JPEG. A WebP image at 80% quality typically produces a file 25–35% smaller than a JPEG at 80% quality with the same perceived visual quality. Use our JPG to WebP converter to compare.
How to Compress JPEG at Any Quality
Use our free Image Compressor — set the quality slider to your desired level and download the compressed result. The tool shows you the before and after file size so you can see exactly how much space you're saving.