WebP is officially supported in WordPress 5.8
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WebP will be officially supported in WordPress 5.8, which is scheduled to be released in July 2021. This article explains the browsers that support WebP, its benefits, and how to convert images to WebP.
Support for WebP from WordPress 5.8
According to WordPress.org, they have announced that WebP will be supported starting with WordPress 5.8, scheduled for release in July 2021.
Just like JPEG and PNG, WebP will be able to be uploaded and used in the WordPress media library.
WordPress 5.8 does not allow you to convert other image formats such as JPEG to WebP. You need to prepare your own WebP.
However, it is planned to be able to convert to WebP in the future.
The following article provides more information about WordPress 5.8.
WordPress 5.8 What’s New? New Features and Changes
What is WebP?
WebP is a new image format developed by Google. Its extension is “webp”.
WebP, like JPEG, is a lossy compression, but can have transparent background like PNG and GIF, and can be animated like GIF.
The differences between the image formats are as follows
| Image format | Compression method | Transparency | Animation |
|---|---|---|---|
| WebP | Lossy compression | 〇 | 〇 |
| JPEG | Lossy compression | × | × |
| PNG | Lossless compression | 〇 | × |
| GIF | Lossless compression | 〇 | 〇 |
Browsers that support WebP
According to Can I use, WebP is supported by all major browsers.
- Google Chrome
- Firefox
- Microsoft Edge
- Safari
Advantages of WebP
WebP has the following three advantages.
Smaller file size
WebP is said to be 25 to 34% smaller than JPEG.
The smaller file size will improve the page display speed.
Transparent image background
Like PNG and GIF, the background of an image can be transparent. This is easy to use because it does not require cropping.
Create animations
It is possible to create animations like GIF. In the past, animation was done with GIF, but now it is possible with WebP.
How to convert an image to WebP
Squoosh, which is published by Google, is a web application that can compress images and convert their formats.
Access Squoosh and drag and drop the image you want to convert to WebP.
- Select WebP
- Click the Download button
The converted image file in WebP format will be downloaded.