Chrome Killed JPEG XL — Is the Format Dead or Just Early?

Google removed JPEG XL support from Chrome in February 2023. The internet declared the format dead. But the story is more complicated than that, and it has since taken a turn that is easy to over-read.

What happened. Chrome shipped JPEG XL support behind a flag in version 91 (2021). In February 2023, with Chrome 110, Google removed it entirely, citing low usage. The stated reason: not enough websites adopted JPEG XL to justify maintaining the code. Critics argued Google killed it to protect WebP — Google\'s own image format.

Where JPEG XL still works. Safari added full JPEG XL support in version 17 (September 2023), seven months after Chrome dropped it, and it is still the only engine that decodes JXL without the user enabling anything. Firefox has partial support behind a flag. Samsung Internet supports it. Photoshop, Lightroom, and GIMP support JPEG XL. The format is alive in the professional imaging world, just not on the open web.

What changed since. Chrome put a JXL decoder back in version 145 (2026), and Firefox exposed one as a Firefox Labs option in version 152 (2026). Neither is on by default. That is the whole catch: code landing in a browser and a format reaching your readers are different events, and only the first has happened. Global JPEG XL coverage is around 15%, essentially all of it Safari.

Why JPEG XL is technically superior. It supports lossless and lossy compression, progressive decoding, HDR, wide colour gamut, animation, and transparency — all in one format. It can losslessly recompress existing JPEG files to 20% smaller sizes without any decoding or re-encoding. No other format can do this.

The practical reality in 2026. Without Chrome decoding it by default, JPEG XL cannot be used as a primary web format. Chrome holds roughly 65% of browser market share globally, and a flag none of those users will flip does not move that number. You can serve JPEG XL to Safari users via content negotiation (Accept header), but you still need JPEG or WebP as a fallback.

What to use instead. For web images: WebP is the practical choice — supported everywhere, 25-35% smaller than JPEG. AVIF offers better compression but slower encoding. For professional archival: JPEG XL is worth considering if your workflow stays within tools that support it (Adobe suite, GIMP).

Bottom line: JPEG XL is not dead as a format, and Chrome has partly reconsidered — but a decoder shipped switched off is not the same as support, so JPEG XL is still not a web standard you can build on. Use WebP or AVIF for websites. Keep an eye on JPEG XL for non-web uses, and check caniuse.com before you act on any version number, including these.

Related reading: AVIF vs WebP vs JPEG · Next-gen formats in 2026 · What is WebP?