Here is a table listing typical file formats used online for websites and what format best suits what purpose.
| Format | Specifications | Applications |
| GIF | 256 colors |
|
| JPG, JPEG | 16 million colors |
|
| PNG | 8 bit | 8 bit color, similar to Gif but can produce a smaller file size |
| *24 bit | 24bit color, similar to Jpg but allows alpha transparency | |
| *32 bit | 32bit colour and allows alpha transparency | |
| Fireworks PNG |
Fireworks native file format | Contains Fireworks-specific data and is editable using Fireworks application |
* requires a hack for alpha transparency to be viewed on certain browsers
Notes:
- PNG 8 – competitor to GIF but is better quality than GIF.
- PNG 24, 32 is not supported in IE6 and lower. Causes transparency not to show properly.


Feedback
*To embed code in Feedback, insert code between "pre" tags.