Convert PNG to TIFF: Free Online Converter

TIFF (Tagged Image File Format) is the professional standard for raster images in publishing, photography, medical imaging, and archival storage. Converting PNG to TIFF moves your lossless image into a format that supports ICC color profiles, CMYK color space, 16/32-bit depth, multi-page documents, and a choice of compression methods (LZW, ZIP, JPEG, none). Both formats are lossless, making this a quality-preserving container change for professional workflows.

PNG and TIFF share the lossless quality philosophy, but TIFF carries significantly richer metadata and professional features. While PNG was designed for web delivery, TIFF was designed for accurate color reproduction across print devices and long-term data preservation. Professional workflows in publishing, prepress, and scientific imaging standardize on TIFF precisely because it addresses the needs that PNG does not.

Commercial print production workflows require TIFF for placed raster images. When a PNG graphic needs to be included in an InDesign, QuarkXPress, or Illustrator layout destined for press, the print shop typically specifies TIFF format. TIFF supports embedded ICC profiles for color management, CMYK color space for process printing, and clipping paths for silhouetting — features that PNG lacks.

Archival institutions mandate TIFF for digital preservation. The Library of Congress, National Archives, and museum digitization standards all specify TIFF as the preservation format for raster images. Converting PNG acquisitions to TIFF ensures compliance with these standards. TIFF's open specification, lossless compression options, and rich metadata support make it the preferred format for records that must remain readable for decades.

Sharp decodes the PNG's DEFLATE-compressed pixel data and writes it as a TIFF file. The default compression is LZW (lossless), which produces somewhat larger files than PNG's DEFLATE for typical content. ZIP compression within TIFF offers ratios closer to PNG. TIFF metadata includes DPI resolution tags, color space information, and creation timestamps. PNG's 8-bit alpha channel is preserved as a TIFF extra sample (associated alpha). The output conforms to TIFF 6.0 and is compatible with virtually every professional image application.