Screenshots are a special case because they usually contain sharp text, lines and flat colors.
Use PNG for most screenshots
PNG is lossless, so text edges and UI lines stay razor-sharp. JPG's lossy compression smears fuzzy "mosquito noise" around text — ugly and harder to read.
When JPG is fine
If the screenshot is mostly a photograph (a full-screen photo, a game scene), JPG will be much smaller with no visible loss.
Keeping the file small
PNG screenshots of high-res screens can be big. Options:
- Resize to the dimensions you'll actually display.
- For photo-heavy shots, convert to JPG or compress.
Related: PNG vs JPG and reduce PNG size.