How to Convert JPG to TIFF: Preparing Images for Print and Professional Use

You have a JPG photo and a print shop is asking for TIFF. Or your publisher needs TIFF files. Or your professional workflow requires a format that doesn't lose quality on every save.

TIFF is the go-to format for print, publishing, and archival work. It's been the industry standard for decades. Here's how to convert your JPG files to TIFF and what to expect.

What Is TIFF and Who Uses It?

TIFF stands for Tagged Image File Format. It was created in the 1980s and has been a standard in professional imaging ever since.

The format supports lossless compression. That means you can open, edit, and save a TIFF file as many times as you want without losing any quality. JPG loses quality every time you re-save it. TIFF never does.

TIFF is used by:

• Print shops and publishers. Magazines, book publishers, and commercial printers prefer TIFF because it preserves full quality. When you send a TIFF to a printer, what comes off the press matches what you sent.
• Photographers. Professional photographers often export their final edits as TIFF for maximum quality. It's the step between RAW editing and final delivery.
• Archivists and libraries. Museums, government agencies, and digital archives store documents as TIFF. The format is stable, well-documented, and reliable for long-term storage.
• Medical and scientific imaging. Fields where image accuracy is critical use TIFF to avoid compression artifacts that could hide important details.

If you're working with any of these groups, there's a good chance they'll ask for TIFF files.

Does Converting JPG to TIFF Improve Quality?

No. This is the most common misunderstanding about format conversion.

JPG is a lossy format. When your image was saved as JPG, some quality was already removed. That data is gone. Converting to TIFF preserves what's left, but it can't bring back what JPG already threw away.

Think of it like photocopying a photocopy. The copy is never better than the original. It can only be the same or worse.

So what's the point of converting? Two things:

It prevents further quality loss. Once your image is in TIFF, you can edit and re-save it as many times as you want. No additional quality is lost. If you kept working in JPG, each save would degrade the image a little more.

It meets format requirements. If a print shop, publisher, or platform requires TIFF, converting your JPG gets you in the door. The quality of your JPG is preserved exactly as-is.

For the best results, always convert from the highest quality JPG you have. A JPG saved at 95% quality will produce a much better TIFF than one saved at 60%.

How Do You Convert JPG to TIFF?

ConvertIMG converts JPG to TIFF right in your browser. Drop your JPG files in, select TIFF as the output, and download.

The conversion runs on your device. No files are uploaded to external servers. This matters when you're working with client photos, medical images, or other sensitive content.

TIFF offers a quality setting that controls compression. Higher quality means larger files but better preservation. For print work, use the highest quality setting. The file size increase is worth it.

Here's what to expect for file sizes:

JPG size	TIFF size (uncompressed)	TIFF size (compressed)
500 KB	5-15 MB	2-8 MB
1 MB	10-25 MB	5-12 MB
3 MB	20-50 MB	10-25 MB

Yes, TIFF files are much larger. That's the price of lossless quality. For web use, this is impractical. For print and archival use, it's expected.

What Quality Settings Matter for Print?

When preparing images for print, a few things affect the final output.

Resolution. Print needs at least 300 DPI (dots per inch). A standard letter-size print at 300 DPI needs an image that's roughly 2550 x 3300 pixels. If your JPG is smaller than that, the print will look soft or pixelated. No format conversion can add resolution that isn't there.

Color space. Print typically uses CMYK color. Screens use RGB. Your JPG is almost certainly in RGB. Most print shops handle the RGB to CMYK conversion themselves, but check with yours to see if they prefer CMYK files.

Compression. TIFF supports both uncompressed and LZW-compressed modes. LZW is lossless, meaning the quality is identical but the file is smaller. Most print shops accept LZW-compressed TIFF. If in doubt, send uncompressed.

Bit depth. TIFF supports 8-bit and 16-bit per channel. Standard JPG is 8-bit, so your converted TIFF will also be 8-bit. That's fine for most print work.

When Should You Use TIFF Instead of Other Formats?

TIFF has a specific role. It's not the right choice for everything.

Use TIFF for:

• Professional print production
• Archival and long-term storage
• Multi-edit workflows where you save many times
• Any situation where a client or vendor requires TIFF

Use JPG instead when:

• You're sharing photos casually (email, messaging)
• File size matters (web, social media)
• The recipient doesn't specifically need TIFF

Use PNG instead when:

• You need transparency
• You're working with screenshots or graphics
• You're staying in the digital/web world
• You can also convert PNG to TIFF if your source is PNG for a cleaner lossless-to-lossless conversion

Use WebP or AVIF instead when:

• You're optimizing for websites
• You want the smallest possible files
• You're building for modern browsers

TIFF's strength is print and archiving. For everything else, there's usually a smaller, more practical format.

For a complete overview of when to use each format, check our image format guide.

Can You Convert Multiple JPGs to TIFF at Once?

Yes. ConvertIMG supports batch conversion. Drop all your JPG files in, select TIFF, and download them as they finish.

This is especially useful for photographers preparing a set of images for a print job. Convert your entire edited collection at once instead of one file at a time.

Keep in mind that TIFF files are large. A batch of 50 photos could easily reach 500 MB or more. Make sure you have enough disk space before starting a big batch.

Ready to Convert JPG to TIFF?

Need print-ready TIFF files from your JPGs? ConvertIMG handles the conversion in seconds. Free, private, works in your browser. Drop your files in and get professional-quality TIFF output.