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Why doesn't Edge Support AVIF images?

AVIF is the most efficient image format I've seen. I'm amazed at the image quality it provides at astonishingly small file sizes. If you haven't, try converting a raw image or two at Squoosh.app. It really saves bandwidth and speeds up image intensive websites. It's significant! I'd love to convert all my raw images to AVIF.

Chrome and Firefox have supported AVIF images for some time now, and it is my understanding that Edge is based on Chromium, which caused me to assume that it too would support AVIF images.

However, I just tested an AVIF dependent application in Edge Version 110.0.1587.46, in Windows 10, and none of the AVIF images are being displayed.

Why aren't AVIF images supported in Edge, given that Edge is based on a browser that does indeed support AVIF images?

Update 2023-10-12

I'm admittedly angry with Microsoft Edge at this point. That's the nicest way I can put it. Chromium spoon-feeds AVIF support to Edge automatically. Then, each release, Microsoft goes out of their way to deliberately remove AVIF support. Sometimes they remove it too late, and it slips into the Edge Betas (as documented below in Charles Roper's answer).

AVIF is an open, royalty-free image file format. Open source projects have no apprehension including support for it (ie. Firefox, Chromium). You'll find AVIF supported in all MODERN web browsers. There is no legitimate excuse for its exclusion from Edge. It certainly doesn't serve the user's, or web developer's, best interests. With no official explanation, we can only speculate the real reason for AVIF's exclusion.

There's obviously not enough people complaining about this. The issue is known, ignored, and remains open indefinitely.

If you'd like to express your own frustration, as I've done multiple times, open Microsoft Edge and press shift-alt-I (or go to the "..." menu > Help and Feedback > Send feedback). Admittedly, I've been completely ignored by this method, but maybe I'm not enough demand to even be seen.

Stackoverflow, thank you for giving us an uncensored way to amplify our persistently ignored requests. Hopefully, someone (with some pull) will read this and help us put this matter to rest. Nothing I've tried, so far, has worked.

Update 2024-01-14

In Charles Roper's answer, he says:

"Alex Russell has reported that AVIF support is enabled in Dev 121 and should not take long to roll down the release trains."

Edge 121 is scheduled for release on the week of January 25, 2024, which means it could arrive any day between January 22nd and 28th.

Solution

  • Update 2024-01-22

    Confirmed working in version 121.0.2277.71 (Official build) beta (64-bit)

    Update 2023-12-16

    Alex Russell has reported that AVIF support is enabled in Dev 121 and should not take long to roll down the release trains.

    Source: https://toot.cafe/@slightlyoff/111591880542991167

    (Thanks @baishu for the heads-up)

    Update 2023-08-27

    AVIF images in Edge Canary 118 seem to have been disabled again.

    Update 2023-07-17

    AVIF images are now showing up in Edge Canary.

    Tested on:

    Slingblade website has avif images

    Update 2023-02-20 @ 22:23

    Alex Russell, Microsoft Partner PM on the Edge team and a Blink API owner has provided an update. It is a licensing issue holding things up.

    See here: https://toot.cafe/@slightlyoff/109899372183448386

    Waiting on licensing things to clear up. Unhappy with the delay, but unavoidable.

    I'll leave my original answer below.

    The correct answer here is that we simply don't know as of 2023-02-20. All we have is speculation. I cannot find any official word from Microsoft on it.

    Suggestions of a flag to enable AVIF support appear to have been hallucinated - they do not work, nor are they documented by Microsoft anywhere.

    The closest I can find to an official comment from Microsoft is from XuDong Peng-MSFT in this answer, in which they give this rather cryptic and vague reason:

    Unfortunately, currently Microsoft Edge does not support avif format files due to design.

    Of course, this makes no sense because other Chromium browsers and Firefox support AVIF just fine on Windows. So we can only speculate as to the reasoning given the silence from Microsoft, and the fully functioning implementations elsewhere. The format is open and royalty-free, so it can't be a licensing blocker.

    Edge remains the only major browser that lacks AVIF support.