Source: https://restorebunny.com/guides/tiff-vs-jpeg-for-scanning-photos/ # TIFF vs JPEG for Scanning Old Photos: Which Should You Save? Choose a scan master and a sharing copy. Compare TIFF and JPEG, avoid repeated compression, and keep an original before AI restoration. Scanning & preservation4 min readUpdated 06 October 2026 Quick answer ## The short version Save an uncompressed or losslessly compressed TIFF as your scan master when supported; export a high-quality JPEG for sharing or compatible uploads. Check the TIFF compression setting, not just the extension. Keep an existing JPEG unchanged: converting it to TIFF cannot recover lost detail. ## Separate the master from the delivery copy A master is the file you return to when you want a different crop, a larger print or a more restrained restoration. A delivery copy is the version you send to relatives or upload to a service. One file does not have to do both jobs. Keep the uncropped scan with its original colour and a little surrounding border, then create named copies for editing and sharing. TIFF can store image data without lossy compression, depending on its save settings. JPEG trades some image information for smaller files. A well-captured, high-quality JPEG can still be very useful; an out-of-focus TIFF cannot compensate for a poor scan. Check the scanner's actual file settings rather than assuming every TIFF export is identical. ## Choose settings based on the job For a one-time family archiving project, saving a TIFF master reduces pressure to rescan a fragile print later. For a quick email copy from a sound print, a high-quality JPEG may be enough. If storage is tight, prioritise the best available originals and establish a backup before making several large intermediate versions. Do not change resolution, colour, sharpening and file format all at once when comparing settings. Scan one representative photograph, export both formats, and compare the same face, a smooth sky and a high-contrast edge at the same display size. Judge a test print too if printing is your intended result. ## Choose a format for three common situations For a fragile family print you may handle only once, capture a full master and check that TIFF compression is uncompressed or lossless in your scanning software. TIFF is a container with several possible encodings; its extension alone is not a promise of lossless storage. Reopen the saved master in your intended editor before starting a large batch. For an email, listing or service that accepts JPEG, make a delivery JPEG from that master and inspect it. For an old JPEG that is your only source, back up that file unchanged. A TIFF working copy may prevent another lossy save during editing, but is not a better original. Neither choice repairs the physical print; keep the object and handle it carefully. ## Estimate storage without guessing JPEG file sizes A 4×6-inch photograph scanned at 600 DPI has about 2400×3600 pixels. An 8-bit RGB pixel uses three bytes, giving 25,920,000 bytes, or about 25.9 MB, of uncompressed pixel data. A 16-bit RGB capture uses twice that amount. These are pixel-data calculations: TIFF headers, metadata and compression change the actual file size. For 100 such 8-bit RGB captures, the pixel-data total is about 2.59 GB per copy before those differences. Measure one real exported file and plan backup capacity as well as working storage. JPEG size depends on the picture and encoder settings, so there is no reliable rule that a particular quality percentage will produce a fixed number of megabytes. ## Avoid the repeated-save trap Repeatedly opening, changing and saving a JPEG can accumulate compression artifacts. Work from your master for each new edit, or use an editor's non-destructive project format while editing. Export a fresh JPEG at the end. Renaming a file does not change its encoding, and converting an already compressed image to TIFF cannot reverse earlier losses. Before uploading to an AI tool, check the formats and file-size limits shown by that tool. If your master is unsupported, make a compatible copy without deleting the master. Keep the generated result separate as well: AI restoration is an interpretation, not a replacement for the scanned evidence. ## A practical folder example For photo FAM-0042, keep FAM-0042-front-master.tif, FAM-0042-restored-v1.jpg and FAM-0042-share.jpg. Record which file was used as the restoration input. If the only surviving copy is FAM-0042.jpg, preserve it unchanged and label it as the available source rather than presenting a later TIFF conversion as a new scan. ## FAQs Should I convert all existing JPEG photos to TIFF? Not to recover quality. Preserve the existing files unchanged. A lossless working format can help during future editing, but it cannot reconstruct information already discarded by JPEG compression. Is TIFF always sharper than JPEG? No. Focus, capture resolution, original condition and processing affect visible detail. Compare exports from the same scan before making a format decision. Can a TIFF be compressed? Yes. TIFF can wrap different image encodings. For a master, choose an uncompressed or explicitly lossless option in your software and verify that the saved file reopens correctly. ## Sources Preservation and technical guidance reviewed for this article. - Library of Congress: [TIFF format and compression options]() - U.S. National Archives: [Digitizing Family Papers and Photographs]() ## Related - [Choose a scanning resolution]() - [Calculate scan pixels and print size]() - [Download the scan-day and archive worksheets]() - [Prepare an email delivery copy]() - [Back up a family photo archive]() ## Ready to restore your photos? Upload an image, choose your settings, and preview results with a before/after slider. [Get Started]()[View Pricing]() RestoreBunny Team Photo restoration editors Guides follow our [editorial policy]() for sourcing, product claims, AI limitations, updates, and corrections.