How to Convert HEIC to JPG — Open iPhone Photos on Any Device
You take a photo on your iPhone, transfer it to a Windows PC or share it with an Android user, and all they see is a grey box or an error. The culprit is HEIC — Apple's default photo format since iOS 11. HEIC files are unreadable on Windows, Android, and most apps outside Apple's ecosystem. This guide explains what HEIC is, why iPhones use it, and how to convert your photos to JPG so they open everywhere.
What is HEIC and Why Does iPhone Use It?
HEIC (High Efficiency Image Container) is Apple's implementation of the HEIF standard, which uses the HEVC (H.265) codec to compress images. Compared to JPEG, HEIC achieves roughly 50% smaller file sizes at equivalent visual quality. A photo that would be 4 MB as a JPEG is typically 2 MB as HEIC — a significant storage saving across thousands of photos.
Apple switched to HEIC as the default format in iOS 11 (2017) to extend on-device storage. For users staying within the Apple ecosystem — iPhone to Mac to iCloud — HEIC is invisible and works perfectly. The problem appears the moment those files leave Apple's world.
Why HEIC Does Not Open on Windows and Android
Windows does not include a native HEIC decoder. Microsoft offers the HEVC Video Extension as a paid add-on in the Microsoft Store, which adds HEIC support to Photos and File Explorer — but requiring every recipient to purchase and install a codec is completely impractical for sharing photos.
Android does not support HEIC natively either. HEIC files appear as unsupported attachments in Gmail, WhatsApp, and file managers on most Android devices. Websites and web apps that accept image uploads typically expect JPEG or PNG — uploading a HEIC file often results in a silent failure or an error.
- Converting to JPG: universal compatibility, 50–80% compression — the right choice for sharing
- Converting to PNG: lossless, larger files — needed for images requiring transparency
- Converting to WebP: excellent compression, modern browser support — ideal for web use
How to Stop iPhone From Shooting HEIC
To prevent the HEIC problem at the source: open Settings → Camera → Formats, and select Most Compatible. This switches the iPhone to shooting JPEG. The trade-off is roughly double the storage per photo — so this works best if you have a large iCloud plan or regularly transfer photos off your device.
An alternative: leave the iPhone on HEIC but enable iCloud's automatic format conversion. When you download photos from iCloud to a Windows device through a browser or the iCloud for Windows app, they are automatically converted to JPEG. AirDropping to a Mac transfers HEIC as-is (Mac opens it natively). Emailing or messaging to a non-Apple device: iOS automatically converts to JPEG before sending.
- Settings → Camera → Formats → Most Compatible: prevents HEIC at capture time
- iCloud download via browser: automatically converts the entire library to JPEG on Windows
- Emailing a HEIC photo from iPhone: iOS converts it to JPEG automatically before sending
- AirDrop from iPhone to Mac: transfers as HEIC (Mac opens it natively with Preview)
How to Convert HEIC to JPG Using MediaFormatter
Go to the Convert HEIC tool, upload your HEIC file (up to 100 MB), select JPG, PNG, or WebP as the output format, and click Convert. The output downloads immediately. The converter handles both .heic and .heif file extensions.
Output quality is set to produce JPG files visually indistinguishable from the HEIC original — you will not see any difference between the HEIC photo and the converted JPG in normal viewing or printing.