What Is a HEIC File, and How Do You Open It?

What HEIC is

HEIC (short for High Efficiency Image Container, part of the HEIF standard) is the photo format iPhones and iPads use by default. It uses modern compression, so a HEIC photo takes roughly half the space of a JPG of the same quality. On a phone full of photos, that adds up to a lot of storage.

HEIC files can also hold extras that JPG can’t, such as Live Photos and depth information for portrait mode.

Where HEIC causes problems

Apple devices open HEIC without any trouble, but elsewhere you may run into it:

• Windows can’t show HEIC photos until you install extra codecs.
• Many websites and upload forms, such as job applications or government portals, only accept JPG or PNG.
• Older Android phones, printers and photo frames may not recognise the files.

Four ways to get JPGs

1. Convert the photos you already have

Drop your HEIC photos into our HEIC to JPG converter. It works in your browser, so your photos are never uploaded. It also leaves out hidden metadata such as the location where the photo was taken, a good idea before posting photos online.

2. Let your iPhone convert when you copy to a computer

On your iPhone, open Settings → Photos and, under Transfer to Mac or PC, choose Automatic. Photos copied to a computer with a cable are then converted to JPG automatically.

3. Take future photos as JPG

In Settings → Camera → Formats, choose Most Compatible. New photos will be saved as JPG. They’ll take more space than HEIC, so only do this if compatibility matters more to you than storage.

4. Add HEIC support to Windows

Windows 10 and 11 can open HEIC after you install Microsoft’s HEIF Image Extensions from the Microsoft Store. Depending on your PC, you may also need the HEVC Video Extensions, which cost a small fee. This lets you view the photos, but the files stay HEIC, so you may still need JPGs for uploading.

Does converting reduce quality?

Converting to JPG compresses the photo again, but at a high quality setting the difference is very hard to see. The JPG will usually be larger than the HEIC, because JPG compression is less efficient. If you need smaller files, compress or resize the JPGs afterwards.