3 ways to convert iPhone HEIC photos to JPG

If photos from your iPhone are .heic files that won’t open on your PC or in another service, there are three main ways to get JPGs. Change the iPhone camera setting for photos you take from now on, convert photos as you move them to a computer, or convert HEIC files you already have right in your browser. Here’s how each method works and what to watch for.

Why HEIC photos sometimes won’t open

Apple says iOS 11 and macOS High Sierra introduced support for HEIF (High Efficiency Image File Format) for photos. HEIF compresses better than JPEG, so it uses less storage on your devices while keeping the same visual quality. When the iPhone camera format is set to High Efficiency, photos are saved in this format.

According to Microsoft’s documentation, HEIF is a container that can use different compression methods, and HEIF files compressed with HEVC typically use the .heic file extension. The HEVC codec might not be available on every PC, though, and you may need to get it from the Microsoft Store. That’s why HEIC photos may not open right away on a Windows PC or in services that don’t support HEIF.

Method 1: Set your iPhone camera to Most Compatible

To save photos as JPG from the start, go to Settings → Camera → Formats on your iPhone and tap Most Compatible. According to Apple, your iPhone then captures photos as JPEG and videos as H.264. To switch back to HEIF, choose High Efficiency on the same screen.

This only affects photos you take after you change the setting. HEIC photos you’ve already taken stay as they are. Also keep in mind that JPEG photos take up more storage than HEIF.

Method 2: Convert when you transfer to a computer, or export on a Mac

When you connect your iPhone with a USB cable and import photos into Photos or Image Capture on a Mac, or onto a PC, they might be converted to JPEG. If you’ve chosen Keep Originals under Settings → Apps → Photos on your iPhone, they’re transferred as HEIC without conversion. So if you want JPGs, check this setting first.

When you share with AirDrop, Messages or email, photos might also be sent automatically in a more compatible format such as JPEG if the receiving device doesn’t support HEIF. Since this depends on the receiving device, check the format of the files that arrive.

On a Mac, you can also open a HEIF image in Photos or Preview, choose File → Export, and pick JPEG as the format before you save.

Method 3: Convert right in your browser

If you already have HEIC files on your computer or phone and don’t want to install anything, you can use a converter that runs in your browser. ZEKILO Studio’s HEIC to JPG tool processes photos inside your browser, so files never leave your device. Here’s what changes during conversion:

• Orientation: Rotation info is applied to the pixels. Our test HEIC with rotation info (stored as 1600×1200, 21 KB) became a 28 KB JPG, saved upright in portrait at 1200×1600.
• File size: HEIC is more efficient than JPG, so files usually get larger after conversion. The example above grew from 21 KB to 28 KB.
• HEIC files with several images: Only the primary image is converted. Our test HEIC with two images (22 KB) became a 26 KB JPG of the primary image (1200×900), with a note on the result.
• Metadata and color: Location (GPS) and device info aren’t kept, and colors are converted to sRGB. Photos taken in Display P3 may look slightly different.
• Live Photos: Only the still photo (HEIC) is converted. The motion part is a separate video file (MOV), and it isn’t converted.

Measured in desktop Chrome; results vary by device and browser.

How to do it with ZEKILO Studio

1. Open HEIC to JPG and drag and drop HEIC photos or pick them with [Choose files]. Conversion to JPG (quality 90) starts right away.
2. If needed, choose JPG or PNG under [Output format] and adjust [Quality]. The photos are converted again automatically when you change an option.
3. Save with [Download]. For several photos, use [Download all (ZIP)] to get them in one go.

You can add up to 50 photos at a time. We recommend up to 20 MB per photo on desktop and 10 MB on mobile. If a converted JPG is over a size limit, lower the quality with Compress Image. If you need WebP or another format, use Image Converter.

Summary: pick the method that fits

Situation	Method
Photos you’ll take from now on	Method 1: set the camera format to Most Compatible
Photos you’re moving to a computer	Method 2: import over USB (check the Keep Originals setting), or export on a Mac
HEIC files you already have	Method 3: convert in your browser

• Method 1 doesn’t change photos you’ve already taken.
• Converting HEIC to JPG usually makes files larger, so compress or resize them if you need to.
• For how the formats differ, see JPG vs PNG vs WebP.