The case against JPEG XL
This article explores the technical and political landscape of the JPEG XL image codec in 2026. It examines why the format was previously rejected by major browsers and whether recent developments in decoder technology might lead to its wider adoption.
Why it matters
Understanding the evolution of image compression standards is critical for web performance and the future of digital media delivery.
Investigating JPEG XL's place as a Web image codec.
Why? JPEG XL is a technically impressive image codec; it is a definitive upgrade over JPEG, more versatile than WebP, and well-equipped to serve use cases beyond the Web. However, it was famously rejected from Chrome in 2023. Because this happened to a royalty-free, flexible, compression-efficient codec from the JPEG Committee that was receiving attention from large companies, the decision didn't land well with many.
Recently, a JPEG XL decoder in Rust has made its way into Firefox and Chrome in some capacity. The Web's major stakeholders may therefore be reversing course on JPEG XL given that the new decoder may protect the Web from reliving 2023's WebP vulnerability . Is this all it took to justify JPEG XL for the Web?
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