How to convert PNG to BMP online
- 1
Drop your PNG file
Drag your Portable Network Graphics file onto the box above, or click it to pick a file.
- 2
Wait a few seconds
Conversion starts on its own and runs on your device, not on a server.
- 3
Download your BMP
Click Download to save the Bitmap Image File file.
PNG vs BMP: format overview
Portable Network Graphics
PNG Development Group (Thomas Boutell) · 1996
- Compression
- lossless
- Color depth
- 16-bit
- Transparency
- Yes
- ✓ Lossless compression — pixel-perfect quality
- ✓ Full alpha transparency (8-bit alpha channel)
- ✗ Large file sizes for photos
Bitmap Image File
Microsoft · 1987
- Compression
- none
- Transparency
- No
- ✓ No compression — original pixel data preserved
- ✓ Universal Windows support
PNG magic bytes: 89 50 4E 47 0D 0A 1A 0A
BMP magic bytes: 42 4D
Why convert PNG to BMP?
PNG to BMP conversion is a niche but real requirement in specific technical contexts. Legacy Windows desktop applications, certain industrial control software, older versions of Microsoft Office running on enterprise systems, and some embedded systems programming tools require BMP as the input format because they predate widespread PNG support. Game development for older platforms using tools like RPG Maker 2000 or Game Maker 6 also specified BMP for sprite and tileset assets.
BMP guarantees compatibility with anything built on the Windows GDI graphics layer, since BMP is the native Windows raster format. When a piece of software throws an unsupported format error with a PNG but not with a BMP, converting is the fastest path forward. Forensic and archival workflows sometimes specify BMP to ensure raw, uncompressed pixel data with no algorithmic transformation applied to the image content.
Converting PNG to BMP expands the file size significantly because BMP stores uncompressed pixel data. A 500 kilobyte PNG might become a 5 megabyte BMP, so be prepared for larger files. The conversion is lossless: every pixel value is preserved exactly, and any color precision in the original PNG is maintained in the BMP. If the PNG has a transparent background, the alpha channel will be filled with a solid color, typically white or black, since standard BMP does not support transparency. The resulting BMP file opens in Paint, Windows Photo Viewer, and any Windows application without additional software.
Quality & file size: PNG to BMP
Typical sizes (12MP photo): PNG 8–25 MB → BMP 35–40 MB.
Both formats keep every pixel, so the BMP looks the same as the PNG.
Frequently asked questions
Will the image quality change after conversion?
Your PNG file never leaves this tab — FormatDrop has no endpoint that receives file data. How it works