TinyPNG Alternative That Doesn't Upload Your Images

TinyPNG is a good tool. Millions of people use it to compress PNG and JPEG files before uploading them to a website. It works well, the output quality is solid, and the interface is simple.

There is one thing it does that most users do not think about: every image you compress gets uploaded to TinyPNG's servers. Your product photos, screenshots with sensitive data, client assets, passport scans for visa applications. All of it goes through their infrastructure.

For many use cases this is fine. For others, it is not.

What happens when you compress an image on TinyPNG

When you drop a file on TinyPNG, the image is uploaded to their servers over HTTPS. Their backend processes the file, compresses it, and sends the result back to your browser. You download the compressed version.

This means your original image exists on TinyPNG's servers, at least temporarily. Their privacy policy states they delete files after a period, but the upload itself is unavoidable. The compression algorithm runs on their machines, not yours.

For a blog header image, this is not a concern. For a screenshot of an internal dashboard, a medical image, or a batch of client deliverables under NDA, the calculus is different.

How client-side compression works

Pixlocal takes a different approach. The compression happens entirely in your browser using WebAssembly. When you drop an image, it never leaves your device. There is no upload, no server processing, no temporary storage on someone else's infrastructure.

WebAssembly allows the same codec libraries that run on servers (like the ones encoding AVIF, WebP, and JPEG) to run directly in your browser at near-native speed. The result is the same quality compression without the network round-trip.

This is not a new idea. Google's Squoosh does the same thing. The difference is that Squoosh handles one image at a time. Pixlocal supports batch processing for up to 20 images per session.

AVIF support changes the equation

TinyPNG outputs PNG and JPEG. That was the right set of formats in 2015. In 2026, AVIF exists.

AVIF compresses up to 50% smaller than JPEG at the same visual quality. It supports transparency, HDR, and wide color gamut. Browser support covers Chrome, Firefox, Safari 16+, and Edge. That is over 93% of global browser usage.

Pixlocal lets you convert any input (PNG, JPEG, WebP, AVIF) to any of three output formats: AVIF, WebP, or JPEG. You pick the format, adjust the quality slider, and compress. TinyPNG does not offer this level of control.

The batch processing gap

TinyPNG allows 20 free compressions, then asks you to pay. Squoosh handles one file at a time. If you are processing a folder of 50 product photos for an e-commerce site, neither option is ideal.

Pixlocal processes up to 20 images per session in parallel. Drop them all at once, choose your format and quality, compress, and download everything as a ZIP. The free tier covers most use cases. All processing happens locally, so there is no server queue to wait in.

Quality control matters

TinyPNG uses automatic quality settings. You upload a file, they compress it, and you get what you get. For most images the result is good. For images where you need specific file sizes (passport photos for visa applications, images for government forms with strict size limits), you need manual control.

Pixlocal has a quality slider from 1 to 100. You see the compressed file size immediately after processing. If the result is too large, adjust the slider and compress again. If the quality is not acceptable, increase the slider. You are in control.

Honest comparison

TinyPNG is a mature, reliable tool with an excellent API for automation. If you need server-side compression in a CI/CD pipeline or a WordPress plugin, TinyPNG is the better choice. Pixlocal does not have an API.

Pixlocal is better when privacy matters, when you need format flexibility (especially AVIF), when you want manual quality control, and when you do not want to create an account or pay for basic compression.

Both tools are free for basic use. Both produce high-quality output. The difference is where the compression happens and what formats are available.

Try it

Go to pixlocal.org, drop an image, select AVIF or WebP, and compress. Compare the output size and quality to what TinyPNG gives you. The result usually speaks for itself.