Java BMP Writer

Java’s built-in ImageIO has limited support for writing BMP files and provides little control over encoding quality and format-specific options. JDeli is a 100% Java BMP writer that gives you full encoding control with no dependencies.

Getting started

Add JDeli to your project via Maven or Gradle, or see using JDeli with Java modules.

What is supported

The JDeli BMP writer supports the following features:

Quick start or to replace in existing code using ImageIO:

The simplest way to write a BMP image is:

JDeli.write(bufferedImage, "bmp", file);

Or to a byte array:

byte[] bmpData = JDeli.write(bufferedImage, "bmp");

Or to an OutputStream:

JDeli.write(bufferedImage, "bmp", os);

Simple usage

For better type safety, use OutputFormat:

JDeli.write(myBufferedImage, OutputFormat.BMP, outputStreamOrFile);

OutputFormat allows setting of any supported Image Format

Benefits:

• Compile-time safety
• Cleaner code
• Recommended for new applications

Advanced usage: controlling the output

Use bmpEncoderOptions when you need control over encoding behaviour.

final BmpEncoderOptions options = new BmpEncoderOptions();

//set any options in options instance - examples below

//As of the 2025.05 release, you can set the bmp subtype to write out as. For example:
options.setOutputSubtype(BufferedImage.TYPE_USHORT_565_RGB); 

//write out
JDeli.write(myBufferedImage, options, outputStreamOrFile);

BmpEncoderOptions allows setting of specific options.

Various image processing operations can be conducted on the image, detailed documentation can be found here.

Performance comparisons:

These figures were generated using jmh (as documented on our blog) with a standard set of images (also documented). They should be easy to replicate if you wish to validate, the code is on GitHub.

The higher the number, the better.
Benchmark results using JMH:
Mode: Throughput Count: 25 Units: ops/s

Number of files: 166

Frequently asked questions

Does JDeli produce better BMP encoding than Java ImageIO?

Yes. While ImageIO can write BMP, JDeli gives you full control over encoding options such as compression and quality, and produces more consistent output across platforms.

Does writing or encoding BMP in Java with JDeli require additional libraries?

No. JDeli is a 100% Java library with no dependencies. It runs on any platform where the JVM runs with no additional installation.

What output types does JDeli support for writing BMP?

JDeli can write and encode BMP to a File, OutputStream, or return the encoded data as a byte array.

See also

• Reading bmp images

• bmp encoder options