How to Convert .PNG to .WebP Using cwebp on Windows (No GUI Needed)
#imageoptimization#windows#powershell#webp
Abiruzzaman Molla

Abiruzzaman Molla @abiruzzamanmolla

About: Backend Developer +3y ( PHP | Laravel | JavaScript | Vuejs | jQuery | RESTful API | Version Control)

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How to Convert .PNG to .WebP Using cwebp on Windows (No GUI Needed)

Publish Date: Jul 17
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🎯 WebP is the future — smaller size, better quality, faster websites.

In this quick guide, you'll learn how to install cwebp on Windows and batch convert .png images to .webp using just PowerShell.

🛠 Step 1: Download WebP Tools for Windows

Download the latest pre-built binaries from Google's official storage:

👉 https://storage.googleapis.com/downloads.webmproject.org/releases/webp/index.html

Choose the zip file matching your system, like:


libwebp-1.3.2-windows-x64.zip
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📂 Step 2: Extract the ZIP and Set the PATH

  1. Extract the ZIP to a location like: 
C:\www\test\libwebp-build
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  1. Inside the folder, you'll find: 
C:\www\test\libwebp-build\bin\cwebp.exe
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  1. Now add this path to your system's Environment Variables:
  2. Search for Environment Variables in Windows Start
  3. Edit the System Path variable
  4. Add: 
  C:\www\test\libwebp-build\bin
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  1. Restart VS Code or your terminal

✅ Step 3: Verify the Installation

Open your terminal and run:

cwebp -version
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Output should look something like:

1.6.0
libsharpyuv: 0.4.2
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🔄 Step 4: Convert All .png Files to .webp in a Folder

Navigate to the folder where your .png files are. For example:

cd C:\www\wsus\dir_name\public\website\images
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Then run this one-liner in PowerShell:

Get-ChildItem -Filter *.png | ForEach-Object {
    $out = "$($_.DirectoryName)\$($_.BaseName).webp"
    cwebp $_.FullName -q 85 -o $out
}
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✅ This will:

  • Convert every .png file in the folder to .webp
  • Use 85% quality
  • Output the .webp file in the same folder

📁 (Optional) Output to a Subfolder

Want to keep .webp files separate? Use this:

$outputFolder = "webp_output"
New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path $outputFolder

Get-ChildItem -Filter *.png | ForEach-Object {
    $out = Join-Path -Path $outputFolder -ChildPath "$($_.BaseName).webp"
    cwebp $_.FullName -q 85 -o $out
}
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🧪 Extra: Check if cwebp is recognized 

where cwebp
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If the command returns a valid path, you’re good. Otherwise, check your PATH again.

🛠 If It Doesn't Work in PowerShell 7

Sometimes PowerShell 7 (pwsh) doesn't refresh your PATH immediately.
Solution: add it manually to your PowerShell profile:

notepad $PROFILE
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Then add this line:

$env:Path += ";C:\www\test\libwebp-build\bin"
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Save and restart terminal.

🎉 Done!

You just built a zero-GUI image optimization workflow on Windows.
You’re now officially in the WebP club 😎

If this helped you — leave a ❤️, bookmark it, or share with a fellow dev!

🔗 Useful Links

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