Transparent PNG or white background: which one should you use?

Transparent PNG

White JPG

What “transparent” really means

The gray-and-white checkerboard is not part of your picture. It’s how apps show “nothing here”, so you can see which parts are see-through. Only some file types can store that: PNG can, JPG cannot. If you save a transparent picture as a JPG, the see-through parts have to become a color, usually white or black.

When to use a transparent PNG

• Designs and slides: Canva, PowerPoint, Keynote, Word and Google Slides all keep the transparency.
• Logos, stickers and anything you place on a colored or patterned background.
• Websites, banners and ads, where the page behind the picture has its own color.
• When you don’t know the final background yet: you can always add one later, but not take one away.

When to use a white background

• Marketplace listings: Amazon asks for pure white (#FFFFFF) on a product’s main image, and white looks clean on eBay, Etsy and Shopify too.
• Documents, CVs and forms that ask for a plain background.
• Printing: many print shops and printers turn transparent areas white anyway.
• Sending in chats and email, where the picture should look the same for everyone.

How to make each one

1. Open cutoutfree.com and choose your photo. The background is removed in a few seconds.
2. For a transparent PNG: keep the checkerboard selected under Background and click Download. It’s always saved as a PNG.
3. For a white background: click the white circle under Background, choose JPG next to the Download button, then download.

Why did my transparent picture turn black or white?

The file is usually fine; the app that shows it is not. Many messaging apps and some websites turn every picture into a JPG when you send or upload it, and fill the see-through parts with white or black. Send it as a file or document instead to keep the transparency. Some photo viewers also draw transparent areas as black or white: open it in a design app to check.

File size

A photo on a white background saved as a JPG is usually several times smaller than the same picture as a PNG, which makes pages and listings load faster. Use PNG only when you need the transparency.

Selling online? See how to put a product photo on a pure white background.