WebP is an image format initially introduced as a way to shrink the web, but it is annoyingly incompatible with a lot of programs. It employs both lossy and lossless compression algorithms, both of which shrink common image formats. WebP images are said to be 26% smaller than PNG files, for example.
But while Windows supports a native way to preview these files, that straightforward compatibility didn’t quite make the cut in macOS. Luckily, however, there’s a bit of a workaround to view the images in Quick Look on any Apple desktop or laptop.
For those unfamiliar, Quick Look (hitting the spacebar) is a way to preview files without actually opening them. You can access it in the file’s context menu, or by clicking a file — but not double clicking to open it — and pressing Command + Y.
The workaround involves installing a curl script, which isn’t as difficult as it sounds. Once installed, you too can preview WebP images in Quick Look using a simple plugin.
1. Type Terminal in the Spotlight search bar.
2. Double click the Terminal app to open it
3. In the Terminal window, copy-paste or type the following script: curl -L https://raw.github.com/emin/WebPQuickLook/master/install.sh | sh
4. Press Enter to run the script to install WebPQuickLook.
5. In the Finder, right-click on the webP image to see the menu.
6. In the menu that opens, click Quick Look.
Note: If you have Homebrew installed as a way to manage your file installations, you can also use the following script: brew cask install WebPQuickLook.