PNG to BMP Converter
Upload a PNG and get back a Windows bitmap: 24-bit if the image is opaque, 32-bit BMP v5 if it carries an alpha channel. BMP stores pixels uncompressed, so expect the file to be several times larger than the PNG you started with.
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Why convert PNG to BMP
PNG is the default for screenshots, logos and UI assets because it compresses losslessly and supports an alpha channel. That compression is also why some software refuses it. Old Windows applications, embedded display controllers, LED sign software, CNC and embroidery packages, certain game modding tools and plenty of university assignments expect a DIB: a header, an optional palette, and then raw pixel rows. BMP is that, and almost any parser written in an afternoon can read it.
On this page the conversion is done on our servers with ImageMagick, which decodes the PNG, auto-orients it, and writes a Windows bitmap. Opaque PNGs come out as standard 24-bit BGR rows. If the PNG has an alpha channel, the output is a 32-bit BMP in the v5 header variant so the alpha survives in the file. An ICC profile embedded in the PNG is carried over to the BMP as-is rather than being converted into another color space.
What changes: PNG palettes are expanded to full color, 16-bit-per-channel PNGs are reduced to the 8 bits per channel that BMP stores, and tEXt/zTXt chunks and any other PNG metadata are dropped, since BMP has nowhere to put them. An APNG is treated as a still image and only its first frame is written. Everything else is pixel-for-pixel, because neither format throws away image data to compress.
The practical cost is size: BMP stores every pixel uncompressed, so the file is width x height x bytes per pixel plus a small header, which is routinely several times the size of the PNG no matter how simple the artwork is. If the recipient only needs a compact file and does not specifically require a bitmap, PNG or JPG is the better delivery format.
How to convert a PNG to BMP
- Check what the receiving program actually wants. Many tools accept any BMP; some older ones only read 24-bit, in which case flatten the transparency in an editor before uploading so no alpha channel is left in the PNG.
- Drop the PNG onto this page, or pick several at once. A guest or free account can send up to 10 files in one request, at up to 50 MB per file (100 MB when signed in to a free account).
- Start the conversion. The files are uploaded over HTTPS and converted on our servers; nothing is processed in your browser.
- Download each finished BMP from the results list. There is no combined ZIP, so multi-file jobs are downloaded one at a time.
- Open the BMP in the target program to confirm the bit depth is what it expects. If it shows black where the PNG was transparent, go back and flatten the PNG onto a solid background first.
What this converter does
- Writes 24-bit BMP for opaque PNGs and 32-bit BMP v5 when an alpha channel is present, instead of silently discarding transparency
- Expands palette (indexed) PNGs to true color so the bitmap has no color table to confuse simple readers
- Carries an embedded ICC profile from the PNG into the BMP without re-converting the colors
- No re-encoding loss: both formats store pixels without lossy compression, so the BMP matches the PNG pixel values at 8 bits per channel
- Takes up to 10 PNGs per job on the free tier (25 on Plus, 50 on Pro), each converted as a separate BMP
- Multi-frame or APNG input is reduced to the first frame, so the BMP is always a single still bitmap
Video Tutorial
Watch this step-by-step tutorial to learn how to convert PNG files to BMP format online for free using MiConvert.com. No software installation required.
PNG to BMP questions
Does this produce a 24-bit BMP?
Yes, when the PNG has no alpha channel. A PNG that carries transparency is written as a 32-bit BMP v5 instead, so the alpha is not thrown away. The bit depth follows the input; there is nothing to pick on the page.
Can I get an 8-bit or 16-bit BMP?
No. There is no bit-depth or palette selector on this page: output is 24-bit, or 32-bit when alpha is present. For an 8-bit indexed BMP (256-color) or a 16-bit RGB565 bitmap, use a desktop editor such as GIMP or IrfanView, which let you choose the color depth when saving.
What happens to a transparent background?
It is preserved in the file as a 32-bit BMP v5 alpha channel. Be aware that many older Windows programs ignore BMP alpha entirely and will render those pixels as black or as opaque color. If your target software is one of those, flatten the PNG onto a solid background before converting rather than relying on the alpha surviving the trip.
Can I convert PNG to a black and white BMP?
Not here. There is no grayscale, threshold or 1-bit monochrome option on this page. Convert the PNG to grayscale or pure black and white in an editor first, then upload it; the BMP will keep those pixel values, though it will still be stored as 24-bit color rather than as a 1-bit bitmap.
Why is the BMP so much bigger than my PNG?
BMP stores every pixel uncompressed. The size is width x height x 3 bytes (or 4 with alpha), plus a small header, no matter how simple the image is. A PNG of a flat-color logo can compress to a few kilobytes and still become several megabytes as a BMP. This is expected behavior for the format.
My conversion failed. What went wrong?
A few things can stop a PNG from converting. Very large images are rejected because the renderer limits dimensions to about 16,000 pixels per side and roughly 128 megapixels in total, so downscale first. Files copied from a Mac that begin with ._ are AppleDouble resource forks, not images, so upload the real file. And a truncated or partially downloaded PNG reports an unreadable or unrecognized format; re-save it from an editor and try again.
Do you keep my files?
The PNG you upload is deleted as soon as the job finishes. The converted BMP stays on our download server for about four hours so you can fetch it, then it is removed automatically. The download link is a long random token, though it is not single-use, so anyone you forward it to can download the file until it expires. File names, sizes and outcomes are recorded in our logs.
Is there a batch mode?
Yes. One job takes 10 files for guests and free accounts, 25 on Plus and 50 on Pro, with per-file caps of 50 MB, 100 MB, 200 MB and 1 GB. Each PNG becomes its own BMP and is downloaded individually; there is no zip-everything button.