PDF vs JPG: when should you use each?
Know when a document should be a PDF and when an image should be a JPG.
Updated
Open PDF to JPGThe short answer
Use PDF for documents and JPG for pictures. A PDF can hold many pages, keeps text crisp at any zoom, and looks the same on every device. A JPG holds a single image, is quick to preview, and is accepted almost everywhere images are.
Use PDF when
The document has several pages: contracts, reports, invoices, CVs, manuals.
Text must stay sharp: digital PDFs store text as text, so it stays crisp however far you zoom, and it can be searched and copied.
It will be printed, signed or submitted: offices, schools and government portals usually expect PDFs, and the layout won't shift between devices.
Use JPG when
It's a photo, or a single page you want to show quickly in a chat, social post, website or slide.
The place you're uploading to only accepts images.
You want a preview anyone can open without a PDF reader.
Keep in mind that JPG compression is lossy. Saving the same image again and again slowly reduces quality, and fine text can look soft. For screenshots, diagrams and text-heavy pages, PNG keeps edges cleaner.
Side by side
Pages: a PDF can hold many pages, while a JPG holds one image per file.
Text: in a digital PDF, text is selectable and searchable. In a JPG it's part of the picture.
Editing: a PDF is hard to edit directly, while a JPG is easy to crop and adjust in any photo app.
File size: it depends on the content. A one-page text PDF is often smaller than a high-resolution JPG of the same page, while a scanned PDF is roughly as large as the images inside it.
Switching between them
- 1PDF to images: open PDF to JPG, choose the pages and a resolution (72, 150 or 300 DPI), and download the images, or a ZIP for several pages.
- 2Images to PDF: open JPG to PDF, add JPG, PNG or WebP images in order, and download one PDF. Each page is sized to its image, so nothing is stretched.
- 3Need crisp edges? Use PDF to PNG instead of JPG for text and diagrams.
Privacy
All three tools in this guide run in your browser, so documents and photos stay on your device.
What about PNG and WebP?
PNG is lossless, so it's the better image format for screenshots, diagrams and pages of text, where JPG can blur fine edges. The files are bigger.
WebP is a newer web format that usually produces smaller files than JPG at similar quality. It's a good choice for images on a website, but some older apps don't open it.
For documents, none of these replaces PDF. Images can't hold several pages, and text in an image isn't searchable unless you run it through OCR.
Frequently asked questions
Which is smaller, PDF or JPG?
It depends on the content. A text-only PDF page is usually smaller than a high-resolution JPG of the same page, while a scanned PDF is about as large as the images inside it.
Is PDF or JPG better for printing?
PDF, in most cases. It keeps the page size and sharp text. If you only have an image, a 300 DPI JPG prints well.
Can a JPG have more than one page?
No. Each JPG is a single image. Combine several into one PDF with JPG to PDF.
Does converting a PDF to JPG reduce quality?
The page is turned into pixels, so choose 150 or 300 DPI and High or Maximum quality to keep text readable.