What is a HEIC file?
By Ajiri Ogba · Updated
HEIC is the image format iPhones and iPads save photos in by default. It stores photos at roughly half the size of a JPG at similar quality, but many websites, Windows PCs and older apps can't open it, which is why people convert HEIC to JPG.
What's inside a HEIC file
HEIC stands for High Efficiency Image Container. It's a HEIF file (High Efficiency Image File Format) whose images are compressed with HEVC, the same codec used for H.265 video. Apple made it the default camera format with iOS 11 in 2017.
One HEIC file can hold more than one image: bursts, thumbnails and depth maps for portrait photos can all live in the same file, with one marked as the primary image.
Why HEIC files don't open everywhere
- Most web browsers can't display HEIC images
- Windows needs extra HEIF/HEVC extensions from the Microsoft Store to open them
- Many upload forms, print services and older photo editors only accept JPG or PNG
Converting HEIC
This site decodes HEIC with libheif, the reference HEIC decoder, compiled to WebAssembly and running in your browser, so the photo is never uploaded. Convert to JPG for compatibility, to PNG for a lossless copy, or to WebP for small files with transparency support. Camera metadata such as GPS location isn't copied into the converted image.
To stop your iPhone creating HEIC files, go to Settings → Camera → Formats and choose Most Compatible.