Free webp to jpg
EN
Image MIME Reference
ACES

ACES Image Container File

image/aces
VS

JPEG Image

image/jpeg
JPEG

A complete technical comparison of ACES Image Container File and JPEG Image — covering compression, feature support, browser compatibility, magic bytes, and when to choose each format.

JPEG wins on browser support

Feature Support

Feature ACES JPEG
Transparency (Alpha) Yes ✕ No
Animation Support ✕ No ✕ No
Progressive Loading ✕ No Yes
HDR Support Yes ✕ No
EXIF Metadata ✕ No Yes
ICC Color Profile ✕ No Yes
ACES Image Container File
image/aces
Extension
.exr
Container OpenEXR (SMPTE ST 2065-4)
Compression Lossless / Uncompressed
Algorithm
PIZZIPRLEB44Uncompressed
Color Depth 16-bit (Half-float), 32-bit (Float)
Developed by Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) / SMPTE
Released 2013
Magic Bytes
76 2F 31 01
Full ACES reference →
JPEG Image
image/jpeg
Extension
.jpg.jpeg.jpe.jfif
Container JFIF / Exif
Compression Lossy
Algorithm
DCT (Discrete Cosine Transform)
Color Depth 8-bit
Developed by Joint Photographic Experts Group
Released 1992
Magic Bytes
FF D8 FF
Full JPEG reference →

Browser Support Comparison

Browser ACES JPEG
Chrome Chrome
✕
✓ All
Firefox Firefox
✕
✓ All
Safari Safari
✕
✓ All
Edge Edge
✕
✓ All
IE IE (Legacy)
✕
✓
ACES

ACES Strengths

  • Industry standard for high-end visual effects, compositing, and color grading
  • Supports 16-bit half-float data, accurately capturing immense dynamic range without clipping
  • Standardized by SMPTE (ST 2065-4) to guarantee universal color interoperability across different post-production facilities
Limitations
  • Considerably larger file sizes than conventional consumer image formats
  • Completely unsupported in web browsers and most standard desktop viewers
  • Requires specialized compositing or color grading software to interpret and view the scene-linear data correctly
JPEG

JPEG Strengths

  • Universal support — every browser, OS, and application handles JPEG
  • Excellent compression for complex photographs with natural color gradients
  • Rich metadata support: EXIF (GPS, camera settings), ICC color profiles
Limitations
  • No transparency — cannot have a transparent background
  • Lossy compression introduces visible artifacts on sharp edges and text
  • No animation support

When to choose which format

ACES
Use ACES when…
  • Visual Effects (VFX)
  • Digital Intermediate (DI)
  • Color Grading
  • Archival
JPEG
Use JPEG when…
  • Photography
  • Websites
  • Social Media
  • Print

More comparisons

ACES vs APNG → JPEG vs APNG → ACES vs AVCI → JPEG vs AVCI → ACES vs AVCS → JPEG vs AVCS → ACES vs AVIF → JPEG vs AVIF → All comparisons →
Share this comparison