Quality
Control image compression quality for optimal file size.
The q parameter controls the compression quality of the output image. Lower values produce smaller files with more compression artifacts.
Usage
# High quality
?q=90
# Medium quality (good balance)
?q=75
# Low quality (smaller files)
?q=50
# Combined with other transforms
?w=800&f=webp&q=80
Valid Range
- Minimum:
1 - Maximum:
100 - Must be a whole number
- Values below 10 are clamped to 10 during processing
Dynamic Quality
When q is not specified, Tuzzle automatically selects a quality level based on the output image's largest dimension:
| Largest Dimension | Auto Quality |
|---|---|
| Up to 1000px | 90 |
| 1000 to 2500px | 85 |
| 2500 to 5000px | 80 |
| 5000 to 7500px | 75 |
| 7500 to 10000px | 70 |
| Over 10000px | 60 |
This provides a good balance between visual quality and file size across different image sizes. Smaller images get higher quality because compression artifacts are more visible, while larger images use lower quality because the detail at full size masks artifacts.
Quality by Format
The q parameter affects different formats differently:
| Format | Behavior |
|---|---|
| JPEG | Controls JPEG quality (MozJPEG encoder, progressive) |
| WebP | Controls lossy WebP quality |
| AVIF | Controls AVIF quality with 4:2:0 chroma subsampling |
| PNG | Quality has minimal effect (PNG is lossless, compression level is fixed at 9) |
| TIFF | Quality has minimal effect (uses LZW compression) |
Recommendations
| Use Case | Suggested Quality |
|---|---|
| Thumbnails | q=80 or auto |
| Product images | q=85 |
| Hero images | q=90 |
| Photography | q=90-95 |
| Backgrounds | q=70 |
| Icons/logos | Use PNG instead |