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Use an <img> element whose src points to the PNG: <img src="images/example.png" alt="A concise description of the image">. Keep the PNG as a separate file for most sites. If the image bytes must travel inside the HTML document, replace the path with a data:image/png;base64,... data URL.

The standard way: reference a PNG file

The HTML Standard says that when a page has one image resource, you embed it with the img element and its src attribute. A complete example is:

<img src="images/example.png" alt="A concise description of the image">

src is a URL, not necessarily a local file-system path. The browser requests that URL and draws the returned image. The img element is a void element, so it must not have an </img> closing tag.

Choose the correct relative path

A relative URL is resolved from the URL of the HTML document. If your files look like this:

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project/
  index.html
  images/
    logo.png

then index.html should use images/logo.png:

<img src="images/logo.png" alt="Site logo">

If the HTML file is in pages/about/index.html while the image is in images/logo.png at the project root, use ../../images/logo.png. A leading slash, such as /images/logo.png, is resolved from the website’s origin and normally points at the server root. An absolute URL, such as https://example.com/images/logo.png, can point to another origin when that resource is publicly available.

Make sure the URL is actually served

Put the PNG in the directory exposed by your web server or static-site host. Opening an HTML file directly with a file:// URL can hide deployment and path mistakes; test through the same local development server or hosting setup that will serve the page. The URL is case-sensitive on many servers, so Logo.png and logo.png may be different files.

Write useful alternative text

The alt attribute is the text alternative for the image. Describe the image’s relevant meaning in the page’s context, not its filename. For example:

<img src="chart.png" alt="Line chart showing revenue increasing from January through June">

The MDN img reference recommends an empty value, alt="", for a purely decorative image:

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<img src="ornament.png" alt="">

An empty value tells assistive technology to skip decoration. Do not omit alt for a meaningful image, use the filename as a description, or rely on title as a replacement for alternative text.

Keep the image’s layout stable

If you know the intrinsic dimensions, add numeric width and height attributes:

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<img src="images/hero.png"
     width="1200"
     height="630"
     alt="Product dashboard overview">

Declaring dimensions lets the browser reserve the image’s space while it loads. The values describe the image’s intrinsic pixel dimensions; CSS can still control its rendered size. A common responsive rule is:

img {
  max-width: 100%;
  height: auto;
}

This keeps a large PNG from overflowing a narrow container while preserving its aspect ratio.

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Use responsive sources when one PNG is not enough

For different files at different viewport widths or pixel densities, use srcset and sizes:

<img
  src="images/photo-800.png"
  srcset="images/photo-400.png 400w,
          images/photo-800.png 800w,
          images/photo-1600.png 1600w"
  sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 800px"
  alt="Mountain trail at sunrise">

The fallback src remains important. The browser uses the candidate list and the displayed-size hint to select an appropriate resource. Use <picture> when you need art direction, such as a different crop on a small screen:

<picture>
  <source media="(max-width: 600px)" srcset="images/trail-crop-small.png">
  <img src="images/trail-wide.png" alt="Mountain trail at sunrise">
</picture>

These are refinements, not prerequisites. A single PNG still uses the first img example.

Inline the PNG with a base64 data URL

If you need a self-contained HTML document, put the encoded bytes in src:

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<img
  src="data:image/png;base64,BASE64_ENCODED_IMAGE_DATA"
  alt="A concise description of the image">

The MDN data URL reference defines the form as data:[<media-type>][;base64],<data>. In this case, image/png identifies the media type and ;base64 tells the browser to decode the following text as base64. Replace the illustrative token with the complete encoding of your actual PNG; the token itself is not an image.

Generate the actual base64 text

On systems with a standard base64 utility, encode the file and insert the result after the comma:

base64 -w 0 logo.png > logo.txt

Some platforms do not support -w 0; in that case, remove line breaks with your platform’s equivalent or use a small script. Python can create a complete data URL:

import base64

with open("logo.png", "rb") as image_file:
    encoded = base64.b64encode(image_file.read()).decode("ascii")

html_src = "data:image/png;base64," + encoded
print(html_src)

Copying binary bytes directly into HTML without base64 encoding does not create a valid data URL.

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External file or inline data: which should you choose?

Approach Markup example Best fit Trade-offs
Separate PNG URL src="images/logo.png" Most website images, reused assets, and files that may be updated Requires the PNG to be deployed and reachable at that URL; the document is easy to read and maintain
Base64 data URL src="data:image/png;base64,..." A self-contained document or a small asset that must travel with the markup Makes HTML substantially harder to read and edit because the encoded content is long; changing the image means regenerating the data

Inline data is an alternative representation of the same bytes, not a way to avoid providing the bytes. It also does not make an image universally faster. Modern browsers treat data URLs as unique opaque origins, which matters if your design depends on origin-based security or browser isolation. For a normal page, the separate file is the maintainable default.

Common mistakes and fixes

The image icon appears, but the PNG does not

  • Open the exact src URL in a browser. A 404 or another error means the path, filename, or deployment location is wrong.
  • Check capitalization and spelling. A server may distinguish image.png from Image.PNG.
  • Recalculate the relative path from the HTML document’s URL, not from your editor’s project tree.
  • Confirm the server returns the actual PNG rather than an HTML error page. A resource can have a .png name and still contain the wrong response.

The image is stretched or squashed

Do not set a width and height with a conflicting aspect ratio. Use the intrinsic ratio, set one dimension and let the other be automatic, or apply height: auto in CSS.

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The data URL shows broken characters

  • Encode the file in binary mode, not as text.
  • Use the exact prefix data:image/png;base64,, including the comma.
  • Do not paste a filename, a base64 value for a different image type, or a value truncated by an editor.
  • Keep the generated string on one logical URL; accidental quotation marks or whitespace in the value can invalidate it.

The image is visible but inaccessible

Add meaningful alt text, or use alt="" when the image is decorative. Text embedded inside a picture may need a longer explanation in surrounding content if the image conveys information that a short label cannot express.

A responsive image is not selecting the file you expected

Check that each srcset URL is valid and that every width descriptor has a numeric w. Ensure sizes describes the image’s actual layout width; otherwise the browser has insufficient information to choose among candidates.

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Security and deployment considerations

Only use image URLs you intend to load. A data URL embeds content in the document, so treat generated HTML as untrusted if users can supply the image or markup. Do not concatenate untrusted strings into HTML without the appropriate escaping and sanitization for your application. For external URLs, consider whether your site’s content-security policy permits the image origin. These controls are separate from choosing PNG versus another image format.

When publishing, verify the final page over the same protocol and host that users will access. A local relative path can work in a development directory yet fail after a build moves files to a different public directory. Keep asset names and references synchronized in your build process.

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Or skip the browser setup

If what you actually need is a fresh PNG of a web page to place in your HTML, ScreenshotNeo returns a screenshot from one GET request. It accepts cookie or consent banners before capture and removes more than 60 known consent platforms, newsletter popups, and chat widgets; each cleanup step can be disabled. Bot checks or CAPTCHAs, blank pages, timeouts, failed loads, and cache hits are not billed, and response headers report the page verdict and whether the request was billed. You can save the response as a PNG and reference that file with the ordinary img method above.

See the ScreenshotNeo API documentation for parameters and options. A minimal cURL capture is:

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curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot" 
  -d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY 
  --data-urlencode url=https://stripe.com 
  -o shot.webp

Change the URL to the page you need and use the resulting image file in HTML:

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<img src="shot.webp" alt="Screenshot of the Stripe homepage">

The same request in Python is:

import requests

r = requests.get(
    "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot",
    params={"access_key": "YOUR_API_KEY", "url": "https://stripe.com"},
    timeout=90,
)
r.raise_for_status()
open("shot.webp", "wb").write(r.content)

And in Node.js:

const q = new URLSearchParams({ access_key: 'YOUR_API_KEY', url: 'https://stripe.com' });
const res = await fetch(`https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot?${q}`);
if (!res.ok) throw new Error(`Screenshot failed: ${res.status}`);
const bytes = Buffer.from(await res.arrayBuffer());
require('fs').writeFileSync('shot.webp', bytes);

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Quick checklist

  • Use <img src="..." alt="..."> for a normal PNG.
  • Resolve relative paths from the HTML document’s URL and verify the deployed file exists.
  • Use meaningful alt text, or alt="" for decoration.
  • Add correct width and height when intrinsic dimensions are known.
  • Use srcset, sizes, or picture only when responsive candidates or art direction are needed.
  • Use a complete data:image/png;base64, URL only when self-containment justifies bulkier markup.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does an HTML image need a closing tag?

No. img is a void element, so write its attributes in the opening tag and do not add </img>.

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Can I use a PNG as a CSS background instead?

Yes, a PNG can be referenced from background-image, but that is a styling background rather than a content image. Use img when the image needs alternative text or represents page content.

What should I do when an image is decorative but still occupies layout space?

Keep the image element with alt="" so assistive technology can ignore it, and retain its dimensions or CSS sizing to preserve the intended visual layout.

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