How to Convert HEIC to JPG (and Stop iPhone Photos Being HEIC)
HEIC saves space on your iPhone, but Windows, websites and upload forms often refuse it. Here is how to turn HEIC photos into JPG in a minute, and how to avoid the problem next time.
By the Fileora team5 min read
You copy photos from your iPhone to a laptop, or try to attach one to a job application, and nothing happens. The file ends in .heic, Windows says it needs an extension, and the upload form only lists JPG and PNG. The photo is fine – it is just saved in a format many places still don't read. Here is what HEIC is, the quickest ways to turn it into JPG, and the two settings that stop it happening again.
What HEIC is, and why your iPhone uses it
HEIC is a photo saved in HEIF, the High Efficiency Image File format. Apple switched its cameras to it because it compresses better: according to Apple, HEIF and HEVC "offer better compression than JPEG and H.264, so they use less storage space" (Apple Support). On a phone that fills up with thousands of pictures, that saving adds up.
Apple lists the devices that capture in HEIF: iPhone 7 or later, and recent iPad models, running iOS 11 or later (Apple Support). If your iPhone is from the last several years, its camera is almost certainly saving HEIC unless someone has changed the setting.
The catch is everything outside Apple's world. HEIC is newer than JPG, which has worked everywhere for decades, and support for it is still patchy.
Why HEIC photos cause problems
Windows. A fresh Windows PC often can't show HEIC files in the Photos app. Microsoft's own fix is to install two add-ons from the Microsoft Store: HEIF Image Extensions, which is free, and HEVC Video Extensions, which Microsoft lists at $0.99. Microsoft notes that "you'll need both, even if you only plan on using photos and not videos" (Microsoft Support).
Upload forms. Job portals, university admissions, visa and government sites usually accept JPG and PNG only. A HEIC file is either rejected outright or silently fails to upload.
Older software and printers. Many photo editors, print kiosks and document tools were built before HEIC existed and simply don't recognise it.
In all three cases, converting the photo to JPG solves it.
Option 1: Convert HEIC to JPG in your browser
The fastest route, on any computer or phone, is the HEIC to JPG converter on Fileora. It runs inside your browser, so your photos are not uploaded to a server – useful when the pictures are of your ID, your family or your documents.
- Add your HEIC photos. Drag them onto the box or tap it to pick files. You can add a whole batch at once.
- Keep the format on JPG. Pick PNG only when you need a lossless copy, and expect the file to be far bigger than the JPG.
- Leave the quality at 90%, or move the slider between 50% and 100%. For photos you'll view on screen, 90% is visually the same as the original.
- Convert and download. Download the photos one by one, or grab the whole batch in a single ZIP.
The converted photos keep their full resolution and the right way up, because the rotation stored in the photo is applied during conversion.
Option 2: Let Windows open HEIC directly
If you only need to view HEIC photos on your own PC, installing the two Microsoft Store extensions mentioned above lets the Photos app open them (Microsoft Support). This doesn't help when you need to send the photo somewhere else, though: the person or website on the other end still receives a HEIC file. For sharing and uploading, converting is the more reliable fix.
Option 3: Export as JPG on a Mac
Macs read HEIC without any add-ons. To get a JPG, open the photo in Photos or Preview, choose File > Export, and pick JPEG as the format before saving (Apple Support). For one or two photos this is quick; for a big batch, a converter that handles many files at once saves time.
Option 4: Stop your iPhone saving HEIC
If you'd rather never deal with HEIC again, you can change how your iPhone saves new photos. Apple's steps: open Settings, tap Camera, tap Formats, then tap Most Compatible (Apple Support). From then on, new photos are saved as JPG and new videos as H.264.
Keep the trade-off in mind: JPG files take more storage than HEIC, so your phone will fill up a little faster. Photos you've already taken stay HEIC – the setting only affects new ones.
There is also a middle way for transfers. When you import photos from an iPhone to a computer over USB, Apple says they "might be converted to JPEG". Your iPhone does this unless Keep Originals is selected under Settings > Apps > Photos (Apple Support). Leaving that option off lets your phone keep space-saving HEIC files while handing compatible JPGs to your computer.
After converting: fitting a size or pixel limit
Converted photos from a modern iPhone are large – often 2 to 5 MB each as JPG, sometimes more, since JPG compresses less efficiently than HEIC. That's fine for keeping, but many forms set a limit such as 100KB or 200KB.
- To hit a file size limit, use Compress JPG: type the maximum size in KB and it finds the best quality that fits, keeping the file as a JPG.
- If the form asks for exact dimensions, such as 600 × 600 pixels, set them first with the image resizer, then compress if the file is still too big.
Doing it in that order – convert, resize, compress – gives the sharpest result for the smallest file.
Does converting HEIC to JPG lose quality?
A little, in theory: JPG is a lossy format, so saving a photo as JPG always throws away some fine detail. In practice, at a quality of 90% the difference isn't visible on a phone or computer screen. If you need a perfect, untouched copy – for professional editing, for example – keep the original HEIC as your master file and convert copies whenever you need to share.
Why the JPG may be bigger than the HEIC is the same story in reverse. HEIC's whole point is better compression, so the same picture stored as JPG at good quality usually takes more space. That's expected, not a sign anything went wrong.
Quick checklist
- Can't open a .heic file on Windows? Convert it, or install the two Microsoft Store extensions to view it locally.
- Uploading to a form? Convert to JPG, then resize and compress to the form's limits.
- On a Mac? File > Export > JPEG in Photos or Preview.
- Want JPG from now on? Settings > Camera > Formats > Most Compatible.
- Sending many photos? Convert them in one batch and download a single ZIP.
HEIC is a sensible format with real benefits on your phone; it just hasn't reached every computer and website yet. Until it does, a quick conversion to JPG gets your photos anywhere they need to go.