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Convert TGA to TIFF - Professional Archival Quality

Transform Targa files into industry-standard TIFF for archival, printing, and publishing.

Step 1: Upload your files

You can also Drag and drop files.

Step 2: Choose format
Step 3: Convert files

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Why Convert TGA to TIFF?

TGA (Targa) files served the graphics industry well since 1984, but modern workflows demand more. TIFF has become the standard for archival, publishing, and print production because it offers something TGA lacks: robust metadata support and flexible compression options.

If you're working with legacy TGA files from game assets, video production, or archived projects, converting to TIFF ensures compatibility with modern publishing software, print services, and digital asset management systems.

How to Convert TGA to TIFF

  1. Upload your TGA file - Drag and drop or click to select your Targa image
  2. Confirm TIFF output - TIFF is selected as your target format
  3. Download your TIFF - Get your archive-ready file instantly

The entire process happens in your browser. No software to install, no account required.

TGA vs TIFF: Technical Differences

Both formats support high color depth and alpha channels, but they serve different purposes:

  • Metadata handling - TIFF supports EXIF, IPTC, and XMP metadata. TGA has minimal metadata capability. This matters for asset management and copyright tracking.
  • Compression options - TIFF offers LZW, ZIP, and JPEG compression choices. TGA uses simple RLE compression or none at all.
  • Industry adoption - TIFF is the standard in publishing, printing, and archival. TGA remains common mainly in game development and legacy video workflows.
  • Multi-page support - TIFF can store multiple images in one file. TGA is single-image only.

In our testing, TIFF files with LZW compression averaged 20-30% smaller than uncompressed TGA files while maintaining identical visual quality.

When to Convert TGA to TIFF

Archival Projects

Digitizing old game assets or video production files? TIFF is the archival standard used by libraries, museums, and media companies. Its metadata support lets you embed creator information, dates, and copyright details directly in the file.

Print Production

Print shops and publishers universally accept TIFF. Many reject TGA outright or require manual conversion. Save time by converting before submission.

Publishing Workflows

Adobe InDesign, QuarkXPress, and other publishing software handle TIFF natively. While they may open TGA files, TIFF integration is more reliable and offers better color management.

Asset Management

Digital asset management systems index TIFF metadata automatically. This makes searching, organizing, and tracking your image library far easier than with TGA files.

Alternative Formats to Consider

TIFF is ideal for archival and print, but other formats may suit specific needs better:

  • TGA to PNG - Choose PNG for web use. It offers lossless compression and universal browser support, though with less metadata flexibility than TIFF.
  • TGA to JPG - JPG works best when file size matters more than perfect quality. Good for email, social media, and general sharing.
  • TGA to BMP - BMP is another uncompressed format, useful for Windows-specific applications that don't handle TIFF well.

Quality and Color Preservation

Converting TGA to TIFF preserves your image data completely. Both formats support:

  • 24-bit RGB color (16.7 million colors)
  • 8-bit alpha channel for transparency
  • 32-bit total color depth

Our converter maintains the full color information from your original TGA file. No quality loss occurs during conversion.

Works on Any Device

Convert TGA to TIFF directly in your browser:

  • Windows, Mac, Linux, Chromebook
  • Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge
  • Tablets and mobile devices

Processing happens locally on your device. Your files are not uploaded to external servers.

Pro Tip

When archiving TGA files as TIFF, use LZW compression for the best balance of file size and compatibility. LZW is lossless and supported by virtually all software that handles TIFF.

Common Mistake

Assuming all TIFF files are uncompressed and huge. TIFF with LZW compression often produces smaller files than uncompressed TGA while preserving identical quality.

Best For

Legacy asset archival, print production, and publishing workflows where robust metadata support and industry-standard compatibility matter more than web optimization.

Not Recommended

Don't use TIFF for web images or when file size is critical. PNG handles web transparency better, and JPG offers much smaller files for photos when perfect quality isn't required.

Frequently Asked Questions

TGA (Targa) is a raster image format created by Truevision in 1984. It supports up to 32-bit color depth with alpha channel transparency. TGA remains common in game development and legacy video production but has limited metadata support compared to modern formats.

TIFF offers superior metadata support (EXIF, IPTC, XMP), flexible compression options, and universal acceptance in publishing, printing, and archival workflows. Choose TIFF when you need professional-grade file management and industry compatibility.

No. Both formats support high color depth and the conversion is lossless. Your TIFF will contain identical visual data to the original TGA file. Color depth, transparency, and detail are fully preserved.

Yes. TIFF fully supports alpha channel transparency. If your TGA file contains transparency information, it will be preserved in the converted TIFF file.

LZW compression offers a good balance of file size reduction and universal compatibility. ZIP compression achieves slightly better compression but has less software support. For maximum compatibility, uncompressed TIFF works everywhere.

It depends on compression. An uncompressed TIFF will be similar in size to an uncompressed TGA. With LZW compression, TIFF files are typically 20-30% smaller while maintaining identical quality.

Yes. Upload multiple TGA files and convert them all to TIFF in a single batch. This saves time when processing large collections of legacy graphics files.

TIFF is universally supported. It opens in Windows Photos, Mac Preview, Adobe Photoshop, GIMP, Affinity Photo, and virtually every image editing or viewing application. Web browsers also display TIFF files.

Yes. The conversion happens entirely in your browser using local processing. Your TGA files are not uploaded to any external server. They remain on your device throughout the process.

Skip TIFF if you need web-optimized images (use PNG or JPG instead), if file size is critical (use compressed JPG), or if you're staying within a game development pipeline that expects TGA format.

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