AVIF Browser Support in 2025: A Complete Guide for Web Developers

Before you ship AVIF images, get the 2025 browser support picture — Chrome, Safari, Firefox and Edge now all render AVIF, with a few caveats to plan around. New to the format? Our complete AVIF guide covers compression, quality and when AVIF beats WebP.

AVIF in 2025: Where We Stand

AVIF (AV1 Image File Format) delivers the best compression of any widely available image format - typically 40-50% smaller than JPEG and 20-30% smaller than WebP. But adoption depends on browser support, and that has evolved significantly. This guide covers the current AVIF browser support landscape and how to implement it safely.

For a broader comparison of AVIF and its closest competitor, see our WebP vs AVIF guide.

AVIF Browser Support Table (2025)

Browser	AVIF Support	Since Version
Chrome (desktop & Android)	Yes	85 (Aug 2020)
Edge	Yes	92 (Sep 2020)
Firefox	Yes	93 (Oct 2021)
Safari (macOS & iOS)	Yes	16.0 (Sep 2022)
Opera	Yes	71 (Aug 2020)
Samsung Internet	Yes	14.0
Chrome iOS	Yes	Follows Safari engine

As of 2025, AVIF is supported by approximately 93% of global browsers according to Can I Use. The remaining gap is primarily older Safari versions (pre-16) and a small fraction of legacy enterprise browsers.

The Remaining Gaps

Older Safari Versions

Safari 15 and earlier do not support AVIF. Users on macOS Monterey (12) and older, or iOS 15 and older, will not render AVIF images. This is the single largest segment of unsupported traffic.

Some Embedded and In-App Browsers

Certain in-app browsers (older Android WebViews, some email clients) lack AVIF support. Always provide a fallback.

Encoding Limitations

Browser support for decoding AVIF is now broad, but encoding speed remains a concern. AVIF encoding is slower than WebP, which matters for real-time conversion services but not for pre-optimized static assets.

The picture Element: Your Fallback Strategy

The correct way to serve AVIF with fallbacks is the HTML <picture> element. It lets the browser choose the first format it supports:

<picture>
  <source srcset="hero.avif" type="image/avif">
  <source srcset="hero.webp" type="image/webp">
  <img src="hero.jpg" alt="Hero image" width="1200" height="630">
</picture>

The browser evaluates each <source> in order and picks the first compatible format. If none match, it falls back to the <img> tag. This guarantees every visitor sees an image.

Why the Order Matters

Always list AVIF first, then WebP, then the original format:

AVIF - smallest file, modern browsers
WebP - slightly larger, near-universal support
JPEG/PNG - universal fallback for legacy browsers

This order ensures each browser gets the most efficient format it can handle.

Server-Side Format Negotiation

If you use a CDN or image service, you can negotiate format via the Accept header:

Accept: image/avif,image/webp,*/*

The server reads the header and serves the best format automatically, without requiring the <picture> element. CDNs like Cloudflare Images, Imgix, and Vercel's image optimizer support this natively.

Generating All Three Formats

To implement the <picture> strategy, you need three versions of each image. Generating them manually is impractical - use a batch converter:

Drop your source images into BulkPicConv
Convert to AVIF first - download the batch
Convert the same images to WebP - download the batch
Keep your original JPEGs/PNGs as the final fallback
Reference all three in your <picture> elements

Everything runs locally in your browser, so there is no upload delay and no privacy concern.

Content Negotiation with CSS

For background images, the <picture> element does not apply. Use CSS feature detection instead:

.hero {
  background-image: url('hero.jpg');
}
@supports (background-image: url('hero.avif')) {
  .hero {
    background-image: url('hero.avif');
  }
}

The @supports rule checks whether the browser can handle AVIF and overrides the background accordingly.

When to Use AVIF vs WebP

Factor	AVIF	WebP
File size (photos)	Smallest	Small
Encoding speed	Slow	Fast
Browser support	93%	97%+
Animation support	Yes	Yes
Legacy fallback needed?	Yes (Safari <16)	Rarely

Use AVIF when you want maximum compression and can implement a fallback. AVIF shines for large hero images and photography where the byte savings are most impactful.

Use WebP when you need fast encoding, near-universal support, or a simpler setup without fallbacks.

Testing Your Implementation

After deploying AVIF with fallbacks, verify:

Open Chrome DevTools > Network tab
Filter by "Img"
Confirm AVIF files are requested (not JPEG)
Test in Safari 15 if available - it should load WebP or JPEG instead

A correctly configured site serves AVIF to capable browsers and a fallback to everyone else, with zero broken images.

Start Using AVIF Today

Generate AVIF, WebP, and fallback formats in one batch with our free image converter - no upload, no sign-up, fully private. Pair it with our image size reduction guide for a complete optimization workflow.

Testing AVIF in Development

To verify AVIF support during development:

Open Chrome DevTools → Network tab
Check the "Accept" request header — should include image/avif
Use the <picture> element with AVIF source and WebP fallback
Test on real devices (especially iOS Safari versions)

The Future of AVIF

AVIF continues to evolve:

AVIF 2.0: Adds gain map support for HDR images
Better encoding speed: Newer encoders are 2-3x faster than initial implementations
Wider adoption: More CDNs and platforms adding native AVIF support