PNG (Portable Network Graphics) is a raster graphics file format that supports lossless data compression. It was created as an improved, non-patented replacement for GIF (Graphics Interchange Format), and is widely used on the internet and in image editing software. PNG excels at storing images with sharp lines and textual or iconic graphics, making it ideal for logos, diagrams, illustrations, and web graphics. It supports a wide range of color depths, including grayscale, indexed color, and truecolor (RGB) with optional alpha channel for transparency. The lossless compression ensures that image quality is preserved during saving and editing, unlike lossy formats like JPEG. PNG also supports interlacing, which allows a low-resolution version of the image to be displayed quickly while the full image is being downloaded. This makes it a good choice for web images where perceived loading speed is important. The format is well-supported across different operating systems and browsers, making it a universally accessible image format.