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BMP to JPG Converter

Convert BMP bitmap images to JPG and shrink file size by up to 95%. BMP files are uncompressed and unnecessarily large for any sharing or web use. Free, instant, private.

Why are BMP files so large?

BMP (Bitmap) is an uncompressed image format developed by Microsoft in 1988. Each pixel is stored raw, with no compression whatsoever. A 4000×3000 pixel image stored as BMP would be approximately 34 MB — the same image as JPEG at quality 85 would be around 2–4 MB. BMP files made sense in the era of early Windows desktop icons, but they're obsolete for any modern use case involving file sharing or web use.

BMP to JPG: practical use cases

  • Windows screenshots — Some older Windows tools save screenshots as BMP by default. Convert to JPG for sharing.
  • Legacy CAD or medical software — Some industrial software exports images in BMP format.
  • Scanned documents — Older scanners sometimes output BMP. Convert to JPG for a fraction of the storage.

Should I convert BMP to JPG or WebP?

For photographic BMPs, JPG at quality 85–90 is the right choice — it provides excellent quality at about 3–5% of the BMP file size. For graphics, logos, and images with sharp edges, convert to WebP — it handles both photographic and graphical content better than JPEG.

Frequently asked questions

Typically 90–97% smaller. A 10 MB BMP image converted to JPG at quality 85 becomes roughly 300–700 KB. The exact ratio depends on image complexity, but BMP-to-JPG compression ratios of 20:1 to 50:1 are common for photographic content.
Yes — JPEG uses lossy compression while BMP is lossless. However, at quality 88–92 (this tool's default), the quality loss is imperceptible under normal viewing conditions. The trade-off of a 95% smaller file at virtually the same visible quality makes this conversion worthwhile in almost all cases.
Microsoft Paint historically defaulted to BMP as the native Windows bitmap format for simplicity and compatibility within the Windows ecosystem. Modern versions of Paint save as PNG by default instead. If you're still getting BMP files from Paint, use "File → Save As" and choose JPEG or PNG instead.
Yes — this tool runs entirely in your browser with no file size limit imposed by a server. However, very large BMPs (50 MB+) may be slow to process on older devices because the browser needs sufficient RAM to hold the uncompressed pixel data during canvas processing. Modern devices handle files up to 100 MB without issues.