In Summary
- Resizing and editing PNG files isn’t the same as editing other image formats like jpg or gif.
- While there are many online image editing apps, many of them don’t retain transparency when you try to edit PNGs.
- In this article, we tell you three simple ways to edit PNG while retaining transparency, And without using Adobe Photoshop whose license costs a bomb.
- For more such cool tips and tricks, check our How-to guides hub.
There are numerous online image editing tools which lets you resize & edit images of different formats like JPG, GIF or PNG. These tools are especially helpful for quickly editing an online image. But the problem is most of these online tools don’t work for some PNG files when you need them to retain transparency.
As a matter of fact, most desktop image editing tools fail as well when it comes to editing (or resizing) PNG files while retaining transparency. They always remove the transparent background and replace it with a colored one. The latest version of Irfan View does show an option to resize PNG images AND retain transparency, but I never figured out how to use it successfully. Using Adobe Photoshop is surely one working option, but not everyone can afford a license for Photoshop. Even those who own one will agree that it takes a lot more time and is not easy enough to do the simple task of resizing.
So here are 3 free online png tools to help us out –
Tools to Edit/Resize PNG Files Online
1. Pixlr
Pixlr is more than a simple resizer. It is a full-fledged image editing tool that lets you create, edit, and resize images, everything online. It is like using mini-photoshop online. Pixlr is my favorite since I can edit the PNG image (like adding text) while retaining the transparency intact.
2. FotoFlexer
FotoFlexer is a simple and free online image editor which allows editing transparent PNGs. Upload your photo, click on the Resize button, type in your dimensions, and go ‘Apply.’ Then click on the ‘Save‘ button and set it to PNG to save to your computer. They also have advanced editing features which you may use if you need them.
Almost a year back, I had reviewed this tool, and it still works fine. It is very easy to use, but then can only be used to resize the image and nothing beyond resizing. They do have other separate tools to convert images from one format to another.
Related Read: 3 Ways to Convert PNG to JPG/JPEG on Windows Without Internet
As for the desktop tools which can help you edit/resize transparent PNGs, the best one is Adobe Photoshop. Others include GIMP, Fireworks, and Microsoft Office Picture Manager.
Which is your favorite and why? Do let us know.