Labs
Image format lab: where do EXIF and GPS live in each container?
Changing the extension feels like a clean. It only changes where fields are allowed to live, and some converters copy the old blocks forward.
If the same photo is a JPEG, PNG, WebP, or HEIC, does the shooting location live in a different place, and which one can this cleaner open?
JPEG, PNG, and WebP keep location in different places. Changing format does not mean GPS is gone. This cleaner did not open HEIC originals, so export JPEG, PNG, or WebP first. Clean the copy in this browser before sending. The file stays on this device and is not uploaded to this site.
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Short answer
Direct answer: the format tells you where to look. It does not tell you that location is gone. HEIC originals need an export this cleaner can open.
- Format facts: Look in JPEG EXIF, PNG text or eXIf, and whatever the WebP converter kept. HEIC originals were not opened here.
- What that does not prove: A format note is not an app’s upload rule.
- What you can do first: Clean the copy in this browser before the file leaves the device. Nothing is uploaded to this site.
🟢 Local sample verified · 1 November 2026 · Viewer and cleaner compared
JPEG metadata lab: where do EXIF and GPS sit in the file?
A JPEG can hold EXIF (including GPS), XMP, ICC, and in some files C2PA in APP11/JUMBF. A local JPEG, PNG, and WebP fixture was measured on 2026-11-01. Format facts stay separate from platform folklore.
🟢 Local sample verified · 1 November 2026 · Viewer and cleaner comparedPNG metadata lab: where do text chunks and GPS live?
PNG is not “metadata-free by default.” It can carry eXIf, textual chunks (sometimes prompts), pHYs, and in some files a C2PA `caBX` chunk. A local JPEG, PNG, and WebP fixture was measured on 2026-11-01.
🟡 HEIC was not opened · 1 November 2026 · The sample was not a readable HEIC containerHEIC metadata lab: why a camera original may need a JPEG export first
iPhone stills are often HEIC. The container can hold EXIF-equivalent item properties, including location, independently of a JPEG sitting next to it. HEIC was not encoded on 2026-11-01. JPEG, PNG, and WebP were measured the same day.
🟢 Local sample verified · 1 November 2026 · Viewer and cleaner comparedWebP metadata lab: does a format change drop EXIF and GPS?
WebP can carry EXIF, XMP and ICC chunks. A conversion to WebP is not automatically a metadata strip. A local JPEG, PNG, and WebP fixture was measured on 2026-11-01.