TGA to JXL Converter

Encoding: the TGA uses uncompressed or run-length encoded (RLE); JXL uses lossy VarDCT or lossless modular coding; existing JPEGs can be repacked without loss, and the download is a JPEG XL encoded with libjxl compiled to WebAssembly, lossy at the quality you choose or lossless.

Bit depth: 8, 15, 16, 24 or 32 bits per pixel in the TGA; JXL allows 8 to 16 bits per channel, or floating point, and the JXL written here has 8 bits per channel.

Colour: RGB, greyscale or a colour map in the TGA; JXL supports sRGB, Display P3, linear and other spaces described in the codestream, written here as 8-bit sRGB.

Transparency: the TGA stores it as the fourth byte of each 32-bit pixel (or one bit in 16-bit files); the JXL keeps it as an extra channel in the codestream.

Metadata: the TGA can carry an image ID field and an optional extension area with author and date; JXL can carry EXIF and XMP boxes in the container form, often stripped by encoders, but nothing is copied across.

TGA is a simple raster format still widely used for game textures and 3D rendering pipelines because it stores alpha channels reliably and loads fast.

A TGA has an 18-byte header (ID length, colour map type, image type 2 for true colour or 10 for RLE, origin, size, bits per pixel and a descriptor byte whose bits give the alpha depth and whether rows run top-down), then the pixels; version 2 files end with a 'TRUEVISION-XFILE' footer.

TGA files usually come from game engines, 3D renderers and texture painting tools.

JPEG XL is a next-generation format designed to replace JPEG. It compresses better than JPEG and WebP, supports lossless, HDR and progressive decoding, and can losslessly repack existing JPEGs.

A JPEG XL file is either a bare codestream starting with FF 0A or an ISO base media container whose 'jxlc' box holds the codestream. A recompressed JPEG keeps a 'jbrd' box that lets the original JPEG bytes be rebuilt exactly.

JXL is the better choice for archiving and future-proof high quality storage, while TGA suits game textures and 3D software.

JXL strengths: Excellent lossy and lossless compression; Progressive decoding and HDR; Huge image sizes. Drawbacks to weigh: Browser support is limited (Safari only by default); Few apps can open it yet.