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Cloudinary and Convertly both deliver on-the-fly transforms from stored (or origin-backed) assets. Convertly uses flat query parameters instead of Cloudinary’s chained transformation segments — easier to diff, cache, and sign.

Migration approach

  1. Inventory transformations — export your most-used Cloudinary c_, w_, h_, g_, and f_ chains from templates or CMS config.
  2. Upload or origin-link assets — Convertly Storage UUIDs/slugs or /{namespace}/o/{slug}/{path} for existing HTTPS origins.
  3. Map params (table below) and rebuild URLs as query strings.
  4. Replace upload SDK calls optionally — Convertly Files and Storage + Transfer API for bulk import; or keep origin fetch only.
  5. Validate signed AI transforms (upscale, bgReplace, etc.) on staging with HMAC signing.

URL shape

CloudinaryConvertly
https://res.cloudinary.com/{cloud}/image/upload/{transforms}/{public_id}https://cdn.convertly.sh/{namespace}/{fileIdOrSlug}?{params}
Chained transforms in pathSingle query string (order-independent for cache key)
Named eager transformationsNamed presets (?preset=hero or /p/hero)

Parameter mapping

Size, crop, and gravity

CloudinaryConvertlyNotes
w_800,h_600,c_fillw=800&h=600&fit=cover
c_fitfit=contain
c_scalefit=inside
c_padfit=contain&bg=…Set pad colour with bg
g_autogravity=smart or gravity=autosmart = heavier content-aware pass
g_facegravity=face
g_xy_center,x_0.3,y_0.4fp=0.3,0.4Manual focal point
ar_16:9,c_fillar=16:9&fit=cover

Format and quality

CloudinaryConvertlyNotes
f_autoformat=autoWebP / AVIF from Accept
f_webp, q_80format=webp&q=80
q_autoq=autoContent-aware quality
dpr_2.0dpr=2

Effects and adjustments

CloudinaryConvertlyNotes
e_brightness:20bri=120Convertly uses absolute scale (100 = unchanged)
e_contrast:10con=110
e_saturation:-30sat=70
e_blur:800blur=…Different scales — tune by eye
e_sharpensharp=…

Overlays and text

CloudinaryConvertlyNotes
l_…, overlay layerswatermark={fileId}Single mark or markTile=grid
Text overlaystext=…&textSize=…Text overlays

AI and background

CloudinaryConvertlyNotes
Background removalbgRemove=1All plans
Generative replacebgReplace=…Forma; signed URL
Object removalobjectRemovalRect=…Forma; signed URL
Upscale / enhanceupscale=1Forma; signed URL

Colour metadata

CloudinaryConvertlyNotes
colors effect / palette API?palette=json on CDN URLAfter transforms
Persistent palettePOST /api/images/analyzeOnce per upload

Privacy

CloudinaryConvertlyNotes
Face blur / pixelateblurFaces=1, pixelateFaces=1
Custom regionblurRegion=x,y,w,h

What Cloudinary users should expect

Strong fit
  • URL-based image delivery with global cache
  • Smart crop, face crop, focal points, format auto
  • Watermarks, text overlays, background removal
  • Custom CDN hostname
Different by design
  • No transformation chain in the path — one flat query string; use presets for reuse
  • Media platform bundled — conversion, compression, workflows, and Forma AI live in the same workspace as the CDN (Media Platform)
  • Analyze endpoint — focal + palette persisted at upload instead of Cloudinary’s separate Admin API colour metadata
Evaluate before migrating
  • Heavy reliance on Cloudinary video transformation chains (Convertly has video CDN params but a different feature depth)
  • Cloudinary DAM UI and folder taxonomy (Convertly has folders and dashboard tools, different UX)
  • Complex multi-layer composite templates — map to presets + watermarks or pre-compose in design tools

Example rewrite

Cloudinary
https://res.cloudinary.com/demo/image/upload/c_fill,g_auto,w_800,h_600,f_auto,q_auto/sample.jpg
Convertly
https://cdn.convertly.sh/assets-acme/{fileIdOrSlug}?w=800&h=600&fit=cover&gravity=smart&format=auto&q=auto

Next steps