Which Apps Support JPEG XL?
Support has grown steadily since the format was standardised, and October 2026 changed the browser picture: Chrome and Firefox now show JPEG XL by default. It's still uneven in ways that surprise people — your phone may open a .jxl that your Windows PC can't. Here's the state of play, without the cheerleading.
by Robert Castillo · Published · updated
Operating systems
Apple is the outlier, in a good way. JPEG XL has been part of the system since September 2023, with iOS and iPadOS 17 and macOS Sonoma 14: on iPhone and iPad it opens in Safari, Files and Photos, and on the Mac in Safari, Preview and Quick Look, with Finder thumbnails too. Preview only joined in after Sonoma's early updates. If you're on a recent Mac or iPhone, the format effectively already won.
Windows can open .jxl, but only with help and only on recent versions. Microsoft's free JPEG XL Image Extension in the Microsoft Store adds thumbnails to File Explorer and lets the Photos app open the files — but it installs only on Windows 11 24H2 or later. On the 24H2 machine we tested it wasn't there out of the box, and without it Windows couldn't decode a .jxl. On Windows 10 and older Windows 11 releases there's no Microsoft option at all, so a third-party viewer is the way in. Our Windows guide walks through both routes.
Linux depends on your desktop. GNOME and KDE image viewers have gained support through their imaging libraries, and anything built on ImageMagick, libvips or GdkPixbuf with the right plugin will handle it. On a current distribution it usually works; on an older one it usually doesn't.
Browsers
| Browser | Shows .jxl? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Safari 17+ (macOS Sonoma 14+, iOS and iPadOS 17+) | Yes, by default | Since September 2023; still images only, no animation or progressive loading |
| Chrome 155+ (desktop and Android) | Yes, by default | Since 6 October 2026; on Android, in web pages only — not .jxl files saved on the phone |
| Chrome 145 to 154 | Behind a flag | chrome://flags/#enable-jxl-image-format |
| Firefox 158+ (desktop and Android) | Yes, by default | Since 13 October 2026 |
| Firefox 152 to 157, Firefox ESR 153 | Built in, off | Firefox Labs or about:config |
| Microsoft Edge 155 | No | Built on Chromium, but no support and no flag |
| Brave 1.97.56+ | Yes, by default | Built on Chromium 155; we tested 1.97.57 |
| Opera | Behind a flag | opera://flags, per caniuse; not checked in October |
| Vivaldi, Samsung Internet | Not confirmed | Test before you rely on it |
| This site's viewer, in any browser | Yes | The decoder runs in the page |
October 2026 changed this table more than the previous three years did. Safari carried JPEG XL almost alone from 2023; then Chrome 155 switched it on by default on 6 October and Firefox 158 followed on 13 October. The details, including what to do on older versions, are in the Chrome guide and the Firefox guide, and our browser test tells you in a second whether yours can show it.
The big exception is Microsoft Edge. It's built on Chromium, yet Edge 155 doesn't display JPEG XL and has no flag for it: Microsoft removed it from the Edge 155 release notes on 9 October 2026, and in our own test Edge simply downloaded a .jxl instead of showing it. This site works differently, which is why it runs in Edge too: the decoder is compiled to WebAssembly and shipped with the page, so it doesn't need the browser to support the format at all.
Photo editors and professional tools
Photoshop and Lightroom
Photoshop opens, edits and saves JPEG XL natively since version 26.8 (June 2025) — look under File › Save a Copy, not Export As. Camera Raw has read and written it since version 16.0 in 2023, and Lightroom Classic 13 exports it and uses it inside lossy DNGs. Details in the Photoshop guide and the Lightroom guide.
Affinity Photo
Affinity Photo 2 opens and exports JPEG XL, according to Serif's own file-format table.
GIMP
Supports JPEG XL import and export in current versions through libjxl. If yours doesn't, you're on an older build — this is one of the cases where updating actually fixes it. Our GIMP guide explains the export dialog.
darktable and RawTherapee
darktable exports JPEG XL, which matters for photographers who want an archival master that isn't a 100 MB TIFF. RawTherapee only opens .jxl files so far (since 5.11); export is planned for version 6.0.
XnView MP and IrfanView
Two free viewers that handle it on Windows, and both batch-convert. XnView MP, free for private use, reads JPEG XL as it comes. IrfanView, free for non-commercial use, needs its separate PlugIns pack, whose JPEG_XL plugin reads and writes the format. On Windows 10, or any Windows without Microsoft's extension, start here.
ImageMagick and libvips
libvips packages usually include JPEG XL; ImageMagick depends on the build — Homebrew's, for one, is built without it, so check yours with magick -list format before you script around it. For scripted or server-side processing this is where the real work gets done.
The reference tools
Underneath nearly everything above sits libjxl, the open-source reference implementation, and its two command-line tools: cjxl to encode and djxl to decode. They are the most complete and up-to-date implementations that exist, and they're free.
For anyone processing images in bulk they're also simply the right tool — a GUI is a poor way to convert forty thousand files. cjxl photo.jpg photo.jxl losslessly re-packs an existing JPEG, and djxl reverses it exactly.
If that's the direction you're heading, the practical walkthrough is in archiving a photo library without losing quality.
One thing none of the browsers above can do is create JPEG XL. Chrome, Firefox and Safari decode the format but don't encode it, so making .jxl files still means one of these tools, an editor from the list above or a converter.
What this means in practice
If you just received one file
Install nothing. On a computer with Chrome 155+, Firefox 158+ or Safari, drag it into a tab; anywhere else, phones included, open it here or convert it to JPG and get on with your day. Installing a codec to look at one photo is a poor trade.
If you're on Windows and see them regularly
On Windows 11 24H2 or later, add Microsoft's free JPEG XL Image Extension from the Store first: it gives you thumbnails in File Explorer and opening in Photos. On Windows 10 or an older Windows 11, install XnView MP, or IrfanView together with its PlugIns pack, instead. The Windows guide has the steps for each.
If you're on a Mac
With macOS Sonoma 14 or later you already have what you need: double-click the file and Preview opens it, Quick Look previews it and Finder shows thumbnails. On Apple devices, iPhone and iPad included, JPEG XL behaves like a normal format.
If you're publishing images on the web
JPEG XL is now usable on the web — Chrome 155+, Firefox 158+ and Safari 17+ show it — but not as the only format. Edge 155 can't display it, Samsung Internet is unconfirmed and many visitors haven't updated. Serve it inside a <picture> with AVIF, WebP or JPEG behind it, and read the AVIF comparison before choosing.