pic-smaller: Compress Images Locally in Your Browser

Overview

Pic Smaller is a free, open-source batch image compressor that runs in the browser. It uses Web Workers, WebAssembly, Canvas, and browser codecs to compress images locally, addressing the privacy and convenience concerns of sending files to an online compression service. The hosted app is available at picsmaller.com, and the project can also be deployed as a static Cloudflare Pages site or a Docker container.

It is aimed at people who need to compress or convert image collections without leaving the browser. The README also highlights Pic Smaller Desktop as a separate flagship native application for larger workloads and additional tools.

Key Features

• Batch-compress JPEG, PNG, WebP, GIF, SVG, and AVIF images.
• Decode HEIC and HEIF files locally and export them to common image formats.
• Convert, resize, and crop images, with encoder-specific quality controls.
• Add files through a picker, folder picker, drag and drop, or clipboard paste.
• Compare original and compressed images with an interactive split view.
• Download individual outputs or save a batch as a ZIP archive.
• Process images on the user's device rather than uploading them to an application server.

Use Cases

• A web designer can reduce a batch of site images before adding them to a project.
• A photographer or content creator can convert HEIC or HEIF files into formats their publishing workflow accepts.
• A privacy-conscious user can compress personal images without sending them to a server.
• A team can offer an image-compression tool on its own infrastructure using the Docker deployment.

Getting Started

git clone https://github.com/joye61/pic-smaller.git
cd pic-smaller
npm ci
npm run dev

See the README for testing, builds, and deployment details.

Alternatives

• squish: Squish offers similar browser-based batch compression and conversion with WebAssembly codecs, but is noted as inactive, while Pic Smaller uses workers, Canvas, and browser codecs.
• reubah: Reubah handles image and document conversion plus optimization, and can run locally or in Docker; Pic Smaller focuses on in-browser image compression and conversion.

Considerations

• The project is active, with regular commits, and has contributions from multiple people; recent work is not concentrated in one contributor. However, there has been no release in over a year, and no issues or pull requests were closed or merged in the measured recent period.
• Development and builds require Node.js 22 or newer. The repository includes tests, but the measured repository data indicates no CI configuration.
• Browser codecs and local processing mean compatibility and performance depend on the user's browser and device. The README does not provide benchmark claims.
• The project is MIT-licensed. Review that license and the bundled codec dependencies when redistributing or embedding it.
• The README presents Pic Smaller Desktop as a separate offering; do not assume its native performance or AI features are part of this browser repository.