Essentials VS Squoosh

• Clean and Minimal Design
  Essentials provides a clean, minimal browser startpage/new tab experience that focuses on simplicity and aesthetics, reducing visual clutter compared to default browser homepages.
• Customizable
  The project allows users to customize various aspects of their startpage, including links, bookmarks, and visual elements, making it adaptable to individual workflows and preferences.
• Open Source
  Being hosted on GitHub and open source, users can freely inspect, modify, and contribute to the codebase, ensuring transparency and community-driven improvements.
• Lightweight
  The project is built with simple web technologies (HTML, CSS, JavaScript), making it fast to load and easy to deploy without heavy dependencies or frameworks.
• Self-Hosted Friendly
  Users can easily host and run the startpage locally or on their own servers, maintaining full control over their data and not relying on third-party services.

Possible disadvantages

• Limited Documentation
  The project has relatively limited documentation, which may make it harder for new users or contributors to understand setup, configuration options, and how to extend the project.
• Niche Use Case
  As a browser startpage, it serves a very specific niche purpose and may not appeal to users who are satisfied with default browser new tab pages or more feature-rich alternatives like Notion or other dashboard tools.
• Small Community
  The project has a relatively small user and contributor base, which can mean slower development, fewer feature additions, and limited community support for troubleshooting issues.
• Manual Configuration
  Customization often requires directly editing code or configuration files rather than offering a user-friendly settings interface, which can be a barrier for less technical users.
• Limited Feature Set
  Compared to more established startpage projects (like Homer, Heimdall, or Flame), Essentials may lack advanced features such as service health monitoring, integrations, or weather widgets that power users might expect.

• Free to Use
  Squoosh is a free web application, which makes it accessible to anyone without the need for a subscription or payment.
• User-Friendly Interface
  The application features an intuitive and easy-to-navigate interface that simplifies the image compression process.
• Multiple Formats Support
  Squoosh supports a wide range of image formats including JPEG, PNG, WebP, and AVIF, allowing for versatile usage.
• Real-Time Comparison
  Users can compare the original and compressed images side-by-side in real time, providing immediate visual feedback on the compression quality.
• Customization Options
  The app allows users to adjust various parameters such as quality, resizing, and other advanced settings for greater control over the compression.
• Open Source
  Squoosh is an open-source project, meaning that its code is transparent and can be reviewed, modified, and improved by the community.
• Offline Capability
  The application can also be used offline, adding a layer of convenience for users who may not always have consistent internet access.

Possible disadvantages

• Limited Advanced Features
  While great for basic compression tasks, Squoosh might lack some advanced features found in professional image editing software.
• File Size Limits
  There might be limitations on the size of the files that can be uploaded and processed, which could be a constraint for users dealing with very large images.
• Web-Based Dependency
  As a web application, its performance can be influenced by the browser and device capability, which could vary significantly among users.
• No Batch Processing
  Squoosh is designed for single-image processing. Users looking to compress multiple images at once will find this feature lacking.
• Privacy Concerns
  Although it can be used offline, the nature of a web app raises concerns for users who prioritize privacy and data security.
• Limited Support Resources
  Being a free tool, it doesn't come with professional support, so users might have to rely on community forums or documentation for help.

No Essentials videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Jumbo Squoosh-o’s Review! #SLIMESTAGRAM #JumboSquooshos

More videos

We have no reviews of Essentials yet. Be the first one to post

• Best tool to make images smaller or to figure out the right setting for batch work
  SaaSHub review

  · Apr 2021

  The only negative thing about this web app, is that it's not clear which formats are supported in which browsers.

Tracking Essentials since Apr 2026.

• Firefox intent to ship: JPEG XL

  It often comes down to compat, and developer requests. Personally I find in-browser encoding for images inadequate, because it doesn't expose enough options. When we built https://squoosh.app/, we exposed the browser encoders for... - Source: Hacker News / 27 days ago

• Can you build a recognizable World Map in under 500 bytes?

  Its a fun challenge. I used https://squoosh.app to make a pretty good one. Mostly just a resize and then OxiPNG for compression. Managed a 124x62 black/white image. OP has a resolution of 195x53, so I had very similar, but slightly worse... - Source: Hacker News / 3 months ago

• Speed Up Your WordPress Site in 30 Minutes: A No-Plugin Performance Guide

  Use a free tool like Squoosh (by Google) to batch convert your existing images to WebP. - Source: dev.to / 4 months ago

View more