What is a TIFF file?
TIFF — professional image format
Use the format TIFF
A concrete example
Prepare a JPEG copy of a scan to send by email.
Useful checks
A TIFF can contain multiple pages. Check their number and color rendering before deleting a working copy.
Choose a conversion
Keep the original and open the result in the software or on the device that will need to use it.
Your questions about this format
How to convert a HEIC photo from iPhone for free?
Choose your HEIC file in Images, then JPEG to share it widely or PNG if your usage requires it. Proceed to preparation, check the output, and start the conversion. Download and open the result. HEIC remains free; size limits and daily quota apply.
JPEG, PNG or WEBP: how to choose?
For a photo to send, start with JPEG. For a logo with transparency or sharp text, prefer PNG. For a web publication, WEBP can be interesting: compare the size and the rendering before publication. Converting a JPEG to PNG does not restore details lost earlier.
Why does my transparent background become opaque?
JPEG does not preserve transparency. Choose PNG or WEBP when the background must remain transparent and the proposed conversion allows it. If the background is already flattened in the original file, changing the format will not remove it.
Will my Photoshop layers or my vector drawing be preserved?
A JPEG or PNG output is a flattened image. It does not retain PSD layers or the editable objects of an SVG or an Illustrator file. Keep your working file and use the exported copy for sharing. Specialized creation formats are indicated by NoLimit.
What is it?
TIFF is the professional's image format: it preserves everything, with no loss whatsoever. It supports multiple pages within a single file, layers, precise color profiles, 16-bit-per-channel depth, and the CMYK mode used in commercial printing.
It is less a single format than a flexible container, able to hold compressed or uncompressed images depending on the need.
History & origin
Created in 1986 by Aldus — the publisher of PageMaker, later absorbed by Adobe — TIFF was meant to give scanner manufacturers a common standard at a time when their devices were mutually incompatible.
It has remained ever since the reference format for scanning, prepress work, and heritage archiving: libraries digitize their collections in TIFF.
Why it is useful
No loss, maximum quality, and support for multipage files and everything the professional print workflow demands.
It is the format of choice for archiving a scanned document you want to be able to use thirty years from now.
Limits & drawbacks
Enormous file sizes: a high-resolution A4 scan can easily exceed 100 MB.
Its very flexibility is a trap — there are so many variants that some TIFF files are rejected by software that claims to support the format. And web browsers won't display it at all.
Practical tips
Reserve TIFF for archiving and printing. For on-screen use or sending files, convert to JPEG or PNG: the file size will drop by a factor of twenty.
For a multi-page scanned document, converting to PDF is often more practical: a single file, readable everywhere, and far lighter.
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Convert a TIFF