The 5 Best Magento 2 Image Optimization Extensions in 2023

Visuals are the lifeblood of any online store. They capture attention, evoke emotions, and, most importantly, they sell products. The power of visuals in e-commerce is undeniable. But what happens when these visuals, designed to enhance user experience, become a hindrance rather than a help?

It’s not uncommon to find yourself tapping your fingers impatiently as a webpage takes its sweet time to load. If you’ve ever encountered this situation, you’re not alone. In the fast-paced world of e-commerce, website performance has a large, measurable effect on conversion rates. In fact, a mere one-second delay in page load time can lead to a 7% loss in conversions, 11% fewer page views, and a 16% decrease in customer satisfaction. These facts underline the importance of speed in the online shopping experience. The faster a webpage loads, the more likely a user is to perform the targeted action on that webpage.

When it comes to shaving off those precious milliseconds from your website’s load time, image optimization emerges as a secret weapon. When done right, image optimization can significantly reduce your webpage’s load time, leading to a better user experience, improved SEO, and, ultimately, higher conversion rates.

But what exactly is image optimization, why should it matter to you, and what can you do to achieve it as a Magento 2 store owner?

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore the importance of image optimization for your Magento 2 store and review the top 5 Magento 2 image optimization extensions. We aim to provide you with all the information you need to make an informed decision and choose the right extension for your store.

So, are you ready to boost your site’s performance and keep your customers happy? Let’s get started!

Why is Image Optimization Important for Your Magento 2 Store?

Image optimization is a process that involves delivering high-quality images in the right format, dimension, size, and resolution while keeping the smallest possible size. It’s a balancing act between maintaining image quality and reducing load times.

Impact on Site Speed

Large, unoptimized images can significantly slow down your website. According to a study by Google, as page load time goes from 1s to 3s, the probability of bounce increases by 32%. This means that if your site is slow due to unoptimized images, you’re likely to lose a significant portion of your visitors, leading to lost sales.

Impact on User Experience

Slow-loading images can lead to a poor user experience. A delay of just a second can lead to a 16% decrease in customer satisfaction. By optimizing your images, you can ensure that your site loads quickly, providing a smooth and enjoyable experience for your visitors.

Impact on SEO

Google has indicated site speed (and, as a result, image optimization) is one of the signals used by its algorithm to rank pages. Moreover, slow-loading pages affect how search engine spiders crawl your pages, which could negatively impact your site’s SEO.

What to Look for in an Image Optimization Extension?

When choosing an image optimization extension for Magento 2 store, consider the following features:

• Ease of Use: The extension should be easy to install, configure, and use.
• Optimization Techniques: Look for extensions that offer a variety of optimization techniques, such as compression, resizing, and lazy loading.
• Image Quality Control: The extension should allow you to control the quality of your images after optimization.
• Support for Various Image Formats: The extension should support various image formats such as JPEG, PNG, WEBP, and GIF.
• Compatibility: Ensure the extension is compatible with your version of Magento 2.
• Integration with other extensions and plugins: The extension should be compatible with other extensions for a smooth workflow.
• Technical support and documentation: As a Magento user, you want the assurance that technical support is readily available whenever you encounter issues or have questions about the extension’s functionality. Look for extensions that offer well-documented resources and reliable customer support channels, such as email or live chat, and ensure they have a prompt response time.

Top Image Optimization Extensions for Magento 2

1. Magento 2 Convert Images to WebP by BSS

Magento 2 Convert Images to WebP by BSS is a powerful extension that automates the process of converting images to the WebP format. This extension is designed to optimize the loading and display speed of your website by automatically converting images in jpg, png, and jpeg formats to WebP (A new generation image format).

Features

1. Automatic Conversion: The extension automatically converts images under formats jpg, png, and jpeg to WebP, optimizing the loading and display speed of the website.
2. Selective Conversion: You can choose specific places you want to convert: All, Product Page, Category Page, Home Page, CMS Page.
3. Quality Control: You can optimize the display of your WebP images by defining the WebP quality.
4. Compatibility with Configurable Products: The extension can automatically convert child items’ images of configurable products.
5. Compatibility with Page Builder: The extension can convert images that are uploaded by Page Builder.
6. Browser Compatibility: The extension is compatible with all browsers, including Safari.
7. SEO Performance Enhancement: By converting images to WebP format, which is less in size than common PNG, JPG, or GIF, you can enhance your website’s performance and overall SEO.
8. Storage Efficiency: Thanks to WebP’s superior compression, it takes up less storage space, saving you money on web hosting.

Compatibility

The Magento 2 Convert Images to WebP extension is compatible with Magento Community versions and Magento Enterprise versions 2.3.x – 2.4.x.

Pricing

The Magento 2 Convert Images to WebP extension is priced at $59.00 for the Community edition. For the Enterprise edition, an additional $150.00 is required.

User Reviews

The extension has received positive reviews from users.

2. Magento 2 Lazy Load by BSS

Magento 2 Lazy Load by BSS is a highly-rated extension that has been downloaded over 1000 times. This extension is designed to enhance your Magento 2 store’s performance by loading product images as customers scroll down the page. This not only reduces the initial load time of your website but also creates an engaging and smooth browsing experience for your customers.

Features

The Magento 2 Lazy Load extension comes packed with a variety of features designed to optimize your store’s image-loading process:

1. Load Product Images as Scroll: The extension loads product images only when they are about to appear on the screen, reducing the initial load time and enhancing the user experience.
2. Advanced Time Point for Loading: You can set a threshold for when the next product images should load before they appear on the screen. This ensures a smooth and constant emergence of product images without lengthening your site’s load time.
3. Offload for Server and Save Bandwidth: The extension reduces server requests and saves internet bandwidth by loading images only when needed.
4. SEO-Friendly: The extension is developed with SEO-friendly code strings, ensuring that search bots like Google, Bing, and Yahoo can index your lazy-load product images.
5. Exclusion Options: The extension allows you to exclude certain controllers, paths, and even the homepage from the lazy load effect.
6. Customizable Loading Icons: You can choose your desired loading icons to match your store’s theme and branding.

Also read, Best Lazy Load Extensions for Magento

Compatibility

The Magento 2 Lazy Load extension is compatible with Magento 2.3.x – 2.4.x for both Community and Enterprise editions.

Pricing

The Magento 2 Lazy Load extension is available for free. The extension also offers an optional installation service for an additional fee of $50.

User Reviews

The extension has received positive reviews from users.

3. Image Optimizer for Magento 2 by Mageplaza

Mageplaza’s Image Optimizer for Magento 2 is a powerful tool designed to enhance your online store’s performance by compressing and optimizing images. This extension is a crucial solution for any Magento 2 store, as it significantly speeds up page load times, improves user experience, and boosts conversion rates.

Features

1. Optimize Multiple Image Types: The Image Optimizer supports various image formats, including PNG, JPG, GIF, TIF, and BMP. This feature allows store admins to compress a wide range of images, optimizing the performance of the store site.
2. Image Optimization Quality – Lossless or Lossy: This feature allows store admins to set the compression level. They can choose between Lossless compression, which retains image quality while reducing file size, and Custom (Lossy) compression, which significantly reduces image size at the cost of some loss in quality.
3. Optimize image via Cron Job: With the support of cron job, the image scan and image compression can be activated on a frequent basis. This feature allows the optimization process to be activated at a certain time frequently to compress the scanned images, saving a lot of time for store admins.
4. Back-Up Original Images: This feature automatically backs up the original images, allowing store admins to roll back any image if necessary. All backup images are stored properly in a certain image directory, ready for use anytime.
5. Included and Excluded Image Directories: Store admins can set the included directories whose images are scanned and the excluded directories which are skipped to scan. This feature makes the scan process more time-saving and focused.
6. Force File Permission: This feature allows store admins to assign access rights to the optimized image path.
7. Skip Transparent Image: Transparent images can be skipped during the optimization process.
8. Record, Requeue, and Restore Optimized Images: This feature records all scanned paths, optimization status, original size, optimized size, optimized percent, and error message. It also allows optimized image files to be re-optimized and restored to their original versions.
9. Optimize Images Manually: Images can be optimized manually by clicking on the Optimize button in the Manage Images grid.
10. Bulk Compress: Multiple image paths can be selected, and you can compress images at the same time.

Compatibility

The Image Optimizer for Magento 2 by Mageplaza is compatible with both Magento 2 Community Edition and Magento 2 Enterprise Edition.

Pricing

The Image Optimizer for Magento 2 by Mageplaza is available in two editions with a 60-day money-back guarantee.

The Standard edition, designed for a great web store start, is priced at $99 for the first year. The Enterprise edition, ideal for an enterprise solution, is priced at $299 for the first year.

User Reviews

Users of the Image Optimizer for Magento 2 by Mageplaza have praised the extension for its impact on their SEO and page loading speed.

4. Lazy Load for Magento 2 by Amasty

Amasty’s Lazy Load for Magento 2 is an image optimizer extension designed to enhance your website’s performance by optimizing the loading of your site pages. This extension improves your site’s performance by loading product images on demand and speeding up page rendering through code and image optimization.

Features

1. Preload Images: This feature allows you to apply preload images to the first screen of the page, ensuring that your customers see the most important content immediately.
2. Lazy Load Products: As customers scroll down, the extension loads Magento products, enhancing the user experience by providing a smooth and seamless browsing experience.
3. Server Offload: By loading images only when necessary, the extension helps to offload the server, saving Internet bandwidth.
4. Image Optimization: The extension allows you to optimize images by WebP format and mobile or tablet resolutions, reducing the size of product thumbnails without losing image quality.
5. Code Optimization and Server Push: Implement code optimization and server push for rapid content delivery, further improving your site’s performance.
6. AMP Functionality: The extension comes with AMP functionality out of the box, allowing you to create fully optimized mobile pages with WebP images.
7. JavaScript, HTML, CSS Optimization: The Lazy Load plugin for Magento includes features for code compression, reducing the size of your scripts, and speeding up page loading time.

Compatibility

The Lazy Load for Magento 2 extension is compatible with Magento versions 2.4.6-p1, 2.4.5-p3, 2.4.4-p4, and 2.3.7-p4.

Pricing

Amasty’s Lazy Load extension for the Magento Community edition is priced at $259, the Enterprise edition at $559, and Magento Cloud at $859. This price includes product updates and support for 12 months. Updates and support prolongation are available for additional charges.

User Reviews

The Lazy Load for Magento 2 extension has received positive reviews from users.

5. Image Optimizer by Apptrian LLC

Apptrian’s Image Optimizer for Magento is a highly-rated extension that aims to enhance your website’s performance by optimizing your images. This tool has been widely appreciated by its users for its efficiency and ease of use. The extension is available in two versions, one for Magento 2 and another for Magento 1, each with its own set of compatible versions.

Features

The Image Optimizer for Magento is packed with a multitude of features designed to streamline your image optimization process:

1. Image Optimization: The extension optimizes your images (GIF, JPG, PNG), reducing their file size without compromising on image quality. This helps in speeding up your site.
2. Easy Installation and Use: The extension is easy to install and use. You can optimize images by clicking a button in Magento Admin or automatically by a configurable cron job.
3. Compatibility with Google Perceptual JPEG encoder “guetzli”: In order to pass the Google PageSpeed Insights test regarding image optimization, Google Perceptual JPEG encoder “guetzli” is required. This image optimizer is fully compatible with “guetzli”. However, you need to install guetzli on your server and configure the extension to use it.
4. Advanced Configuration Options: If you are an advanced user, you will appreciate the extension’s configurability. You can change optimization options and even swap utilities used for optimization with the ones you prefer.
5. Batch Size and Paths Options: The “Batch Size” is the number of images to be optimized per click or cron execution. The “Paths” option is a text area field where you can type paths you want to be scanned for images.
6. Cron Jobs: The extension provides an easy way to enable or disable the Scan and Reindex Process Cron Job and the Optimization Process Cron Job. You can also type Cron Expressions for these processes.
7. Utility Options: The extension allows you to set GIF, JPG, and PNG optimization utilities, specify their exact paths if they are already installed on your system, and set their options.

Compatibility

The extension is compatible with a wide range of Magento versions. The current extension version for Magento 2 is 2.2.7, compatible with Open Source (CE) versions 2.0 to 2.4, Commerce using on prem (EE) versions 2.2 to 2.4, and Commerce on Cloud (ECE) versions 2.2 to 2.4.

For Magento 1, the current extension version is 2.2.3, compatible with Open Source (CE) versions 1.5 to 1.9.4, and Commerce using on prem (EE) versions 1.10 to 1.14.4 and 1.9.0.0 to 1.9.2.0.

Pricing

The Image Optimizer for Magento by Apptrian is a free extension, making it a cost-effective solution for your image optimization needs. However, if you require professional installation, the company offers an additional installation service for a fee of $49.99. Support is also available for additional charges.

User Reviews

The Apptrian’s Image Optimizer for Magento extension has received positive user reviews.

How to install and configure a Magento 2 image optimization extension?

Installing and configuring a Magento 2 image optimization extension involves a few steps. Here’s a general guide:

Step 1: Download the Extension

First, you’ll need to download the extension from the Magento Marketplace or the provider’s website. Make sure the extension is compatible with your version of Magento 2.

Step 2: Upload the Extension to Your Server

Once you have the extension files, you need to upload them to your Magento 2 server. This can usually be done using an FTP client. The extension files should be uploaded to the app/code directory of your Magento 2 installation.

Step 3: Run Installation Commands

After uploading the extension files, you need to connect to your server via SSH and navigate to your Magento 2 root directory. From there, you’ll need to run a series of commands to install the extension. These commands typically include:

php bin/magento module:enable Vendor_Extension
php bin/magento setup:upgrade
php bin/magento setup:di:compile
php bin/magento setup:static-content:deploy
php bin/magento cache:flush

Replace “vendor/extension” and “Vendor_Extension” with the actual vendor and extension names.

Step 4: Configure the Extension

1. Log into your Magento Admin Panel.
2. Navigate to the extension’s configuration settings (the location will vary depending on the extension). This is usually under Stores > Configuration > Vendor > Extension.
3. Configure the settings according to your needs. This may include setting the image quality, choosing the image formats to optimize, enabling or disabling the extension, and more. The exact options will depend on the extension.
4. Save your changes.

Step 5: Test the Extension

Finally, test the extension to make sure it’s working correctly. You can do this by checking your site speed before and after enabling the extension and using tools like Google PageSpeed Insights to see if your images are optimized.

Bonus: Best Practices for Magento Image Optimization

Read on to discover expert tips and techniques for maximizing the effectiveness of your image optimization efforts.

Use high-quality images

High-quality images enhance your website’s overall aesthetic and help build trust with potential customers. Investing in professional product photography or using high-resolution stock images can showcase your products in the best light possible.

Additionally, high-quality images are more likely to be shared on social media platforms and featured in online publications, increasing your brand’s visibility and reach. Remember, first impressions matter, so make sure to prioritize using high-quality images throughout your Magento 2 store.

Optimize alt tags and filenames

Alt tags provide a text alternative for images, enhancing accessibility and improving SEO. By using descriptive and relevant keywords in alt tags, you can improve your website’s visibility and ranking on search engines.

Similarly, optimizing filenames by including descriptive terms helps search engines understand the content of your images. This leads to better indexation and higher chances of appearing in relevant search results.

So, remember to optimize alt tags and filenames to enhance both user experience and SEO performance on your Magento 2 store.

Implement lazy loading

Enable Lazy Load to ensure that images are only loaded when users scroll down the page, reducing the overall load time of your site. This not only improves user experience but also helps in boosting site traffic and increase conversion rates.

Image file formats and compression techniques

It is recommended to use the appropriate image format, such as PNG, JPG, GIF, TIF, and BMP based on the type of image and its purpose.

While PNG is ideal for transparent images or those with limited colors, JPG works well for photographs or complex visuals. GIF format is suitable for animated graphics, while TIF and BMP are preferred for high-quality print images.

Additionally, utilizing lossy or lossless compression methods allows users to reduce file size without compromising visual quality. Lossy compression involves discarding some data from the original image to achieve smaller sizes but may result in a slight degradation in quality.

CDN integration

With CDN (Content Delivery Network) integration, images are automatically optimized and served to users from the nearest server location, ensuring fast and efficient delivery. This eliminates the need for manual image optimization techniques like adjusting image size or format.

The result is improved website speed, reduced page load times, and ultimately higher conversion rates. So by integrating a CDN with Magento 2, you can optimize your images effortlessly and enjoy the benefits of a faster and more successful online store.

Final Thoughts

The speed and performance of your Magento 2 store can significantly impact user experience, SEO rankings, and, ultimately, your bottom line. Image optimization plays a crucial role in enhancing your site’s performance, and the right Magento 2 image optimization extension can make this task much easier and more efficient.

We’ve explored some of the best Magento 2 image optimization extensions available in the market, each offering unique features and capabilities. Whether you’re looking for an extension that supports WebP conversion, lazy loading, or one that offers comprehensive image optimization features, there’s an extension out there to meet your needs.

Remember, while these extensions can significantly improve your site’s performance, they are just one piece of the puzzle. The hosting service you choose for your Magento store is equally, if not more, important.

So, take the time to evaluate your options, choose the right tools and a reliable, Magento-optimized hosting service like Host Duplex, and give your Magento 2 store the speed boost it deserves.