CONVERT
PNG → BMP
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Fast, secure PNG to BMP conversion. No registration required.
PNG stores raster images using lossless DEFLATE compression and supports 24-bit RGB plus an 8-bit alpha channel, giving it full transparency at file sizes considerably smaller than uncompressed formats. BMP, Microsoft's original Windows bitmap format, stores pixel data with no compression by default — each pixel occupies a fixed number of bytes in a straightforward grid that the operating system reads directly into memory. The conversion from PNG to BMP is therefore an expansion: where a typical 1920×1080 PNG screenshot might weigh 300–600 KB, the same content as a 24-bit BMP lands at exactly 5.93 MB (1920 × 1080 × 3 bytes plus a small header). Transparency is the central casualty: PNG's alpha channel has no equivalent in standard 24-bit BMP, so any semi-transparent or fully transparent pixels are composited onto a solid background — typically white — before writing the file. The resulting BMP carries all the original color information at full fidelity for opaque regions, with zero additional compression artifact, but it is strictly a flat, opaque image.
PNG Image
Source formatPNG is a lossless image format that supports transparency. It is ideal for graphics, logos, screenshots, and any image where preserving exact pixel data is important.
BMP Image
Target formatBMP is an uncompressed raster image format native to Windows. Files are large but preserve exact pixel data with no compression artifacts. Rarely used on the web due to file size.
Why convert PNG to BMP
The primary real-world driver for this conversion is compatibility with legacy Windows toolchains that predate broad PNG support. Older Visual Studio resource editors, some embedded-system image tools, certain industrial HMI configuration software, and a handful of Windows XP-era applications read BMP natively but struggle with PNG. Game modding workflows for engines from the mid-2000s frequently require BMP assets because the engine's texture importer was written before PNG became ubiquitous. Some Windows desktop wallpaper engines and screensaver builders also mandate BMP. A secondary case is forensics or archiving: BMP's trivial byte layout makes pixel values readable without a decoder library, which matters when writing low-level image processing code or when debugging raw framebuffer output.
HOW TO CONVERT
PNG → BMP
Drop the PNG file
Drag and drop or click to upload your PNG. The image is transferred securely over HTTPS and queued for conversion.
Re-encode with ImageMagick
ImageMagick decodes every pixel of the PNG and writes a matching BMP with sensible default quality settings.
Download the BMP
The converted BMP is ready to download as a single file; both files delete automatically within two hours.
Common Use Cases
Share across platforms
Send BMP files to anyone without worrying about whether they have the right software for PNG.
Embed in documents
Drop BMP output into Word, Google Docs, PowerPoint, Notion or a website without conversion warnings.
Optimize size
BMP often produces smaller files than PNG for web, email and storage.
Archive & future-proof
Store in a widely-supported format that will still open on future operating systems without legacy plugins.
PNG vs BMP — Strengths and limitations
What each format does best, and where it falls short.
PNG Strengths
- Lossless compression — every save preserves the original pixels perfectly.
- Full 8-bit alpha channel for smooth transparency.
- Excellent for text, UI screenshots, logos, and line art.
- Royalty-free and an ISO standard (ISO/IEC 15948).
- Supports 16-bit color depth for high-fidelity work.
Limitations
- Much larger than JPEG for photographs (no perceptual compression).
- No native animation in most software (APNG support is inconsistent).
- No CMYK support — web and screen only, not print.
BMP Strengths
- Dead-simple format — trivially easy to read and write.
- Lossless and uncompressed — perfect bit-exact pixel storage.
- Universally supported in Windows applications since 1985.
- Supports 1, 4, 8, 16, 24, and 32-bit color depths.
Limitations
- Enormous file sizes — no meaningful compression in typical use.
- Not a web format — browsers support it but nobody serves BMPs over HTTP.
- No metadata support (no EXIF, no ICC profile in practice).
PNG vs BMP — Technical specifications
Side-by-side comparison of the technical details.
PNG
- MIME type
- image/png
- Compression
- Lossless — DEFLATE (zlib)
- Color depth
- 1, 2, 4, 8 or 16 bits per channel
- Max dimensions
- 2^31 − 1 pixels per side (2.1 billion)
- Transparency
- Full 8-bit alpha channel
- Standard
- ISO/IEC 15948:2004
BMP
- MIME type
- image/bmp
- Compression
- None (typical); RLE 4/8 bit (rare)
- Extensions
- .bmp, .dib
- Color depths
- 1, 4, 8, 16, 24, 32 bits per pixel
- Byte order
- Little-endian
| Specification | PNG | BMP |
|---|---|---|
| MIME type | image/png | image/bmp |
| Compression | Lossless — DEFLATE (zlib) | None (typical); RLE 4/8 bit (rare) |
| Color depth | 1, 2, 4, 8 or 16 bits per channel | — |
| Max dimensions | 2^31 − 1 pixels per side (2.1 billion) | — |
| Transparency | Full 8-bit alpha channel | — |
| Standard | ISO/IEC 15948:2004 | — |
| Extensions | — | .bmp, .dib |
| Color depths | — | 1, 4, 8, 16, 24, 32 bits per pixel |
| Byte order | — | Little-endian |
PNG vs BMP — Typical file sizes
Approximate file sizes for common scenarios.
PNG
- Icon or small logo 2–20 KB
- UI screenshot (1920×1080) 200–800 KB
- High-res photo (12 MP) 10–30 MB
- Print-ready illustration 5–50 MB
BMP
- Small icon (32×32) 4 KB
- Screenshot (1920×1080) ~6 MB
- 4K image (3840×2160) ~25 MB
- Scanned A4 at 300 dpi ~25 MB
Quality & Compatibility
Color fidelity for opaque pixels is preserved exactly: the conversion is lossless for any pixel that was fully opaque in the PNG, since both formats store 8 bits per channel for RGB. No resampling, no compression artifact, no color-space shift occurs. What is irrecoverably lost is the alpha channel: transparent and semi-transparent pixels are flattened. PNG metadata — text chunks such as author, copyright, and creation-time fields — is also dropped, as BMP has no standardized metadata section. Bit depth is constrained: if the source PNG is a 16-bit-per-channel (48-bit) image, the BMP output will be downsampled to 8 bits per channel (24-bit), which causes a subtle but real reduction in highlight and shadow gradation for high-bit-depth photography or medical images. Indexed-color PNGs (palette-based, 8-bit or fewer) can convert cleanly to 8-bit BMP with palette intact, avoiding that downsampling issue.
Tips for Best Results
- If your PNG contains transparency, set the background compositing color before converting — white is the default, but tools and design assets often look correct only against black or a brand color. Uploading a flat, pre-composited PNG avoids surprises.
- For assets going into a Windows resource file (.rc), the target application's documented BMP requirements matter: some older resource compilers expect a 16-bit (555 or 565) BMP rather than 24-bit. Verify the bit depth the tool accepts before converting, as re-converting from a 24-bit BMP to 16-bit introduces color quantization.
- BMP files have no built-in compression by default and grow proportionally with pixel count, so very large canvases produce multi-megabyte files. If your downstream tool accepts it, 32-bit BMP (with an unused alpha byte per pixel) is sometimes the better target for Windows GDI applications because it aligns pixel rows to 4-byte boundaries without padding, making direct memory mapping more predictable.
Frequently Asked Questions
It depends on the codecs involved. If both PNG and BMP are lossy, the pixels are re-encoded and a small amount of detail is discarded — invisible at default quality settings on photographs. If BMP is lossless (PNG, TIFF, BMP) the output keeps every pixel of the decoded PNG exactly, but cannot recover detail that PNG had already compressed away.
Often yes, especially when BMP is lossless. PNG tuned for efficient web delivery will usually produce smaller files than BMP's default settings. If file size matters, drop the quality in Advanced or pick a more compressed target format instead.
KaijuConverter uploads over HTTPS, processes the image in an isolated container and deletes both the source and the output within two hours. No account is required, file contents are never logged, and we do not use uploads to train any model. For confidential material, the paid plan includes a data-processing agreement.
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Related Guides
BMP Bitmap Format: The Complete Technical Guide
Everything about the BMP format: DIB header variants, pixel storage, color depths (1 to 32-bit), RLE compression, alpha channels, and BMP vs PNG vs TIFF.
Read guideBMP Format: Windows Bitmap Images Explained — Headers, Compression & Use Cases
Learn what BMP files are, how the Windows Device Independent Bitmap format works, supported colour depths, compression options, and when to use BMP vs PNG.
Read guidePNG: Advanced Color Modes, Filtering & Compression Strategies
Comprehensive guide to PNG encoding: color types (indexed, grayscale, RGB, RGBA), scanline filtering (Sub/Up/Average/Paeth), CRC checksums, gamma correction, ICC color profiles, interlacing methods.
Read guideSecure & Private Conversion
Your files are encrypted during transfer, processed in isolated containers, and automatically deleted within 60 minutes. We never read, share, or store your data.