To convert a PNG or JPEG with cavif, run cavif image.png or cavif photo.jpg in a terminal. By default, the tool writes an AVIF file beside the input with the same base name—for example, image.avif. You can install a prebuilt executable or use Rust’s Cargo, then adjust quality and encoding speed for your workflow.
Install cavif
The cavif-rs README points to prebuilt release downloads, including a portable Linux executable and executables for macOS and Windows. For the latest platform-specific files and instructions, check the project’s current release assets rather than assuming a particular filename or version.
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If you have Rust tooling installed, the package documentation lists this Cargo installation command: cargo install cavif. The docs.rs package page identifies version 1.6.0, dated 2025-06-21; that is a versioned package record, not a guarantee that it is the newest release available when you install.
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Open a terminal in the directory containing your image and run:
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cavif image.pngThe documented result is image.avif. For a JPEG, substitute its filename:
cavif photo.jpgThe README also documents converting multiple input images in one invocation and multi-threaded encoding. For an explicit destination, use -o; for example, cavif -o output.avif image.png. Use --overwrite when you intend to replace an existing output, and --quiet to suppress routine output.
Choose quality and speed settings
cavif documents --quality=n on a scale from 1 to 100, with a default of 80, and --speed=n from 1 to 10, with a default of 4. The project says the quality scale is only a rough approximation of JPEG’s and that lower speed settings can produce smaller files at the cost of slower encoding; higher speed settings can harm compression. These are the project’s usage guidance, not a measured guarantee for every image.
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For example, to encode at quality 75 and speed 5:
cavif --quality=75 --speed=5 image.pngChoose settings by checking the resulting image at its intended display size and comparing the output file size with the original. A quality value of 100 is not lossless: cavif explicitly says it does not support lossless compression.
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Check AVIF compatibility in your target viewers
The cavif-rs README says, “Images work in all modern browsers,” and lists Chrome 85 or later on desktop, Chrome on Android 12, Firefox 91, and Safari on iOS 16 or macOS Ventura as examples. Treat that list as the project’s documented compatibility guidance, not a universal guarantee for every device, browser build, or image feature.
The README also notes reported right-edge pink-line problems in Windows preview and very old Android decoders. Windows preview may not support 10-bit images; the project’s suggested workaround is to encode at 8-bit depth with --depth=8. Before distributing converted images, open them in the viewers and on the devices your audience actually uses.
When to use avifenc or Squoosh instead
AOMedia’s avifenc manual, dated 2025-04-11, documents a command-line encoder that accepts JPEG, PNG, and Y4M inputs and offers controls for color quality, speed, workers, bit depth, and lossless configuration. Google’s AVIF guide also documents Squoosh, a browser-based conversion option, and describes avifenc for batch work.
Pick a workflow based on the inputs and controls you need: cavif is a straightforward terminal option for PNG and JPEG; avifenc exposes additional documented controls and input types; Squoosh provides a browser-based path. The cited documentation does not provide a current, like-for-like benchmark of these tools, so it cannot establish which one is faster, produces smaller files, or looks better for your images.
Quick Recap
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