While WebP and AVIF generate much of the interest these days from a tech perspective for modern image formats, the PNG image format was just updated with new features.

Two decades after becoming an ISO/IEC standard, the Portable Network Graphics file format saw a new revision published under a W3C Recommendation flag. The PNG Specification Third Edition is the first major update since the Second Edition was published back in 2003.

With the PNG Third Edition specification there is now native support for High Dynamic Range (HDR) content, official support for EXIF data, and officially supporting Animated PNGs (APNG) as part of the specification. Proper support for HDR is good to see out of PNG in 2025 as well as Wide Color Gamut (WCG) images as well as finally having official APNG coverage.

PNG Third Edition also addresses prior errata, various clarifications, and a variety of smaller technical updates.

The PNG Third Edition specification can be found at [1]W3.org .



[1] https://www.w3.org/TR/png-3/