What is a HEIC file?
HEIC is the format iPhones and iPads have used for photos since iOS 11. It stores the picture with HEVC compression inside a HEIF container, which keeps the same detail as a JPG in roughly half the space - the reason Apple made it the default.
The catch is compatibility. Windows needs an extra codec to open it, many websites and upload forms reject it, and older photo software does not recognise it at all. Converting to JPG gives you a file every device, browser and form accepts.
JPG, PNG or WebP?
| Format | Choose it when |
|---|---|
| JPG | You want the file to open everywhere - email, Windows, upload forms, printing. Quality 85-92% is indistinguishable from the original for photos. |
| PNG | You need lossless pixels, for editing or archiving. Expect files several times larger than the HEIC. |
| WebP | The photo is going on a website. Smaller than JPG at the same quality and supported by every current browser. |
How to convert HEIC to JPG
- Drop your HEIC photos onto the box above, or click it to choose them. You can also paste them.
- Pick JPG, PNG or WebP, the quality, and whether to shrink large photos.
- Download each photo, or all of them at once as a ZIP.
Conversion starts as soon as the photos are added. Change the settings afterwards and press Convert again to redo the whole batch.
On an iPhone you can also stop this at the source: Settings → Camera → Formats → Most Compatible makes the camera save JPG from then on. See HEIC vs JPEG on iPhone for what you give up.
What happens to the photo's metadata
The converted copy is drawn fresh from the decoded pixels, so it carries none of the original's EXIF data: no GPS location, no phone model, no capture settings. That makes it safe to share where you would not want the place a photo was taken to travel with it. The colours, size and orientation are kept. If you need the EXIF preserved, the Mac app can do that.
Read more about what EXIF data contains.
How your files stay private
Most free converters upload your file, process it on their server and send the result back - so a copy of it passes through somebody else's machine. This page does all of the work in your browser instead. The files you choose are read into memory on your own device, processed there and handed back as a download; none of their contents is transmitted. You can switch off Wi-Fi after the page has loaded and it keeps working.