When you need a JPG instead of a HEIC

HEIC is an efficient format, but support outside Apple’s ecosystem is patchy. Windows needs an extra codec from the Microsoft Store to open it, many websites and government forms only accept JPG or PNG, and older photo editors refuse the file entirely. Converting to JPG gives you a file that opens on practically any device and in any app.

If you only have a few photos and an iPhone at hand, you can also set Settings → Camera → Formats → Most Compatible so future photos are saved as JPG. That does not convert the photos you already have, which is where this tool helps.

Size and quality

Expect the JPG to be larger than the HEIC it came from, often 1.5 to 2 times larger at quality 85. That is the price of compatibility: HEIC uses a newer, more efficient compression method. Lowering the quality to 75 brings the size closer to the original with little visible difference on a phone or laptop screen. PNG keeps every pixel exactly but produces much bigger files, so use it only when you plan to edit the image further.

How it works

Your browser reads each file, decodes it with libheif (the open-source HEIF library, compiled to WebAssembly) and encodes the result with MozJPEG, all in background workers so the page stays usable. Photos are turned upright using the orientation stored in the file. The conversion runs in current versions of Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari. Because everything happens locally, a large batch depends on your device’s speed and memory: a recent laptop typically handles a 12-megapixel photo in a second or two.

Frequently asked questions

Why are my iPhone photos HEIC files?

Since iOS 11, iPhones save photos in HEIC (High Efficiency Image Container) by default because it takes about half the space of a JPG. Apple devices open it natively, but many Windows apps, older programs and upload forms do not accept it.

Are my photos uploaded to a server?

No. The HEIC decoder (libheif, compiled to WebAssembly) and the JPG encoder run inside this browser tab. Your photos are read from your disk and the results are saved back to it; nothing is sent over the network.

Will I lose quality converting HEIC to JPG?

JPG is a lossy format, so there is a small loss each time you save one. At quality 85 or above it is very hard to see. If you need an exact copy of the pixels, choose PNG instead, but expect files several times larger.

Does the JPG keep the photo's location and camera details?

No. The converted file contains only the image, without EXIF data such as GPS location, date taken or camera model. That is handy before sharing photos publicly, but it also means photo apps will not sort the JPGs by the original capture date.

What about Live Photos and burst shots?

The tool converts the main still image of each file. The video part of a Live Photo is a separate .mov file and is not included. If a HEIC file contains several images, only the primary one is converted.