If you’re not a designer or don’t work with tools like Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, understanding the differences between various file formats can be tricky. Which ones are best for print or digital use? Which ones offer higher resolution, and which ones have lower quality? And what’s the right format for your logo?
In this post, I’ll break down the best practices and uses for four of the most popular image file types.
I spend time saving logos and collateral items in all sorts of file types and sizes to make sure my clients have everything that they will need in the future and these are the ones I encounter most often in my work. Feel free to comment below if you find these tips helpful or if you’d like more information on any other formats!
1. EPS (Encapsulated PostScript)
You’ve probably heard the term “vector” thrown around a lot. Designers love working with vector files because they’re scalable—you can resize them to any dimension without losing quality. This makes EPS the ideal format for logos and illustrations. EPS files can contain both graphics and text.
2. JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group)
JPEGs are great for photos and can be printed, but they’re best suited for the web. The downside? When you try to enlarge them, they become pixelated, and if you place a JPEG on anything other than a white background, it’ll have a white box around it. JPEGs are also compressed, meaning some quality is lost in the process.
3. PNG (Portable Network Graphics)
While PNGs can be used for printing, they’re especially great for web use. Personally, I prefer PNGs over JPEGs because they offer slightly better quality and have the added bonus of a transparent background—meaning you can place them against any backdrop, and they’ll blend seamlessly. PNG is also a lossless image compression format, so no quality is lost when saving.
4. PDF (Portable Document Format)
PDFs are incredibly versatile. They’re commonly used for high-resolution printing, but they’re also perfect for digital viewing. When it comes to logos, using a PDF format will often give you the benefit of a transparent background, too. Plus, PDFs are universally accessible, making them a reliable choice for sharing and archiving.
Let me know if this clears up any confusion or if you have questions about other file formats!
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