How to Convert HEIC to JPG on Any Device

iPhones save photos as HEIC by default. It's a clever format: roughly half the size of a JPEG at the same quality. But the moment those photos leave Apple's world, things break. Windows shows a blank thumbnail, a website upload form says "unsupported file", or an Android friend can't open what you sent.

If you want the background on why this happens, read why iPhone photos won't open on Windows. This post is the practical bit: how to convert HEIC to JPG on whatever device you're holding right now.

The Universal Option: Convert HEIC to JPG Online

This works the same on Windows, Mac, Linux, Chromebooks, iPhone and Android, because it all happens in the browser:

1. Open HEIC to JPG.
2. Add your photos. You can select dozens at once for batch conversion.
3. Download the JPGs.

No app to install, no account, no watermark, and your photos are deleted from our servers automatically after conversion. If you need transparency or a lossless copy for editing, use HEIC to PNG instead. For PDFs of receipts or documents you photographed, there's HEIC to PDF.

Now for the device-specific methods.

On Windows 10 and 11

Windows can view HEIC once it has the right extensions installed, but converting them in bulk is clumsy.

1. Install HEIF Image Extensions from the Microsoft Store (free). Some PCs also need HEVC Video Extensions, which Microsoft sells for a small fee, unless your PC maker preinstalled it.
2. Open the photo in the Photos app.
3. Click the ⋯ menu → Save as, and choose .jpg.

This works one photo at a time. For a folder of holiday photos, the online HEIC to JPG converter is much faster, and you don't need to buy a codec.

On a Mac

macOS opens HEIC natively, and Preview can convert in a few clicks:

1. Open the photo (or select several and open them together) in Preview.
2. For one photo: File → Export, set Format to JPEG, adjust quality and save.
3. For several: select all thumbnails in the sidebar, then File → Export Selected Images, click Options, choose JPEG and pick a folder.

The Photos app can also export: select photos, then File → Export → Export Photos and choose JPEG.

On an iPhone or iPad

You have two options: stop creating HEIC in the first place, or let iOS convert when you share.

Shoot in JPG from now on: go to Settings → Camera → Formats and pick Most Compatible. New photos save as JPG. Existing photos are unchanged, and the files will be larger.

Convert automatically when transferring: Settings → Photos → Transfer to Mac or PC → Automatic. iOS then converts photos to JPG when you copy them to a computer over a cable.

Convert specific photos now: in the Files app, open a photo and use Share → Save Image. Or open HEIC to JPG in Safari, tap the upload area, and choose Photo Library. iOS can hand the photos over as JPG, and the converter handles any that arrive as HEIC.

On Android

Recent Android phones can usually display HEIC, but plenty of apps, messengers and upload forms still can't handle it.

• Google Photos: open the photo and download or share it. Depending on your phone and app version, it may be saved as JPG.
• Any Android phone: open HEIC to JPG in Chrome, tap to upload, select the photos and download the JPGs. This is the most reliable route, because it doesn't depend on your phone's codec support.

On a Chromebook or Linux

ChromeOS and many Linux desktops can't open HEIC out of the box. The online converter is the simplest route: no codecs, no terminal commands.

Does HEIC to JPG Lose Quality?

Very little, if you do it once at a high quality setting. Both HEIC and JPEG are lossy, and JPEG is less efficient, so the JPG is bigger than the HEIC for the same visual quality. What you should avoid is converting back and forth repeatedly. Convert once from the original and keep that JPG.

Keeping Dates and Location

Photo metadata (EXIF) stores the date taken, camera settings and, if location was on, GPS coordinates. Most conversions keep this information. If you're posting photos publicly, you may want to remove the location. Check your sharing app's privacy options, or strip metadata before you share.

Which Method Should You Use?

There's also a step-by-step HEIC to JPG guide with screenshots-level detail. When you just want it done, convert HEIC to JPG and move on, or see every image format in the image converter.