HEIC to JPG
Convert iPhone HEIC photos to JPG in your browser. Free, private, no upload: files never leave your device. Batch convert supported.
About this tool
iPhones and iPads save photos as HEIC by default, which cuts storage in half but breaks the moment you need to email a photo, upload it to a website, or open it on Windows. This tool converts HEIC to JPG directly in your browser: drop in your photos and download universally compatible JPGs seconds later.
Unlike most HEIC converters, nothing is uploaded anywhere. The HEIF decoder runs as WebAssembly on your own device, so your personal photos stay personal. That also means there is no queue, no throttling, and no limit on how many photos you convert.
Common uses
- Upload iPhone photos to a website or form that rejects HEIC files
- Send photos to someone on Windows or an older Android phone
- Import iPhone photos into software that only reads JPG, like older versions of Photoshop or embroidery and print tools
Automate via API
The same conversion is available as a REST endpoint for scripts, pipelines, and backends. POST the file, get the converted file back:
curl -X POST https://formatably.com/api/v1/tools/heic-to-jpg \ -H "X-Api-Key: YOUR_API_KEY" \ --data-binary @photo.heic \ -o photo.jpg
Direct requests accept up to 4 MB; the large-file flow handles up to 100 MB. Both are covered in the API documentation · Get an API key
Where HEIC photos get rejected, and what to do
Upload forms are the most common failure point. Job application portals, government sites, marketplace listings, and the WordPress media library typically reject HEIC because the server software behind them cannot decode it. The fix is always the same: convert to JPG first, then upload. The image inside is identical; only the container changes.
Windows is the other frequent offender. Windows 10 needs a paid HEVC codec extension from the Microsoft Store before Photos will open an HEIC file, and older versions cannot open them at all. If you regularly send photos to Windows users, converting before you send saves everyone the trouble.
If you want your iPhone to stop producing HEIC in the first place, go to Settings, then Camera, then Formats, and choose Most Compatible. Your camera will shoot JPEG from then on. The tradeoff is that photos take roughly twice the storage, which is why many people leave HEIC on and convert only the photos they need to share.
HEIC notes
HEIC (High Efficiency Image Container) is the default photo format on iPhones and iPads since iOS 11. It stores photos at roughly half the size of JPEG at the same quality, but support outside the Apple ecosystem is still patchy.
- Windows, older Android devices, and most web upload forms reject HEIC files.
- A .heif extension is the same container; both open the same way here.
- Live Photos convert as their still frame; the motion part is a separate video track.
JPG notes
JPG (JPEG) is the universal photo format: every camera, phone, website, printer, and government upload form accepts it. It compresses photos well but does not support transparency, and each re-save loses a little quality.
- JPG has no transparency; transparent areas are filled with white during conversion.
- JPG is lossy: converting into it trades a small amount of quality for compatibility and size.
Frequently asked questions
Why does my iPhone save photos as HEIC?
Since iOS 11 Apple uses HEIC (High Efficiency Image Container) because it stores the same photo at roughly half the size of JPEG. You can make the camera shoot JPEG instead under Settings, Camera, Formats, Most Compatible, but photos you already took stay HEIC.
Will converting HEIC to JPG lose quality?
The conversion re-encodes the photo as a high-quality JPG (92% quality). Any loss is visually negligible for photos; you will not see a difference at normal viewing sizes.
What about Live Photos?
A Live Photo converts as its still frame. The three-second motion clip is a separate video track that JPG cannot hold.
Are my files uploaded to a server?
No. The conversion runs entirely in your browser using WebAssembly and the canvas API; your files never leave your device. There are no ads and no trackers on tool pages. You can verify this yourself: open your browser's developer tools, watch the Network tab while converting, and you will see no upload requests. It even works offline once the page has loaded.
Is there a file size limit?
In the browser there is no hard limit; you are bounded only by your device's memory, and files of a few hundred megabytes are usually fine. The REST API accepts files up to 4 MB in a direct request, or up to 100 MB using the large-file upload flow described in the API docs.
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