HEIC vs JPG: what's the difference and when to convert

You take a photo on your iPhone and try to share it with someone on Windows. They come back with "I can't open this file." Sound familiar? That's the HEIC problem. Here's what's going on — and how to decide whether to convert.

What is HEIC?

HEIC stands for High Efficiency Image Container. It's based on the HEIF standard (High Efficiency Image File Format), which Apple adopted with iOS 11 in 2017. The codec behind it is the same one used for video streaming — so it's extremely good at squeezing quality into a small file.

A typical iPhone photo shot as JPG might weigh 4–5 MB. The same photo in HEIC is often under 2 MB — at the same or slightly better visible quality. For a phone with a 12 MP camera taking hundreds of photos, that difference adds up fast.

HEIC also supports features JPG simply cannot: 16-bit colour depth, multiple frames (for Live Photos and burst sequences) and lossless editing of certain metadata without re-encoding the image.

Why iPhones default to HEIC

Storage is the honest answer. Apple's cameras produce large, high-quality files. HEIC keeps those files manageable without a visible quality penalty, which means you get more photos in the same iCloud plan. Apple uses HEIC internally and converts to JPG transparently when you share photos through AirDrop to a Mac or upload them to some apps — but that automatic conversion doesn't always happen, and it never happens when you transfer photos manually via a USB cable to a Windows PC.

The compatibility problem

JPG has been around since 1992. Nearly every piece of software that displays images supports it. HEIC is much newer and its patent licensing is more complicated, so support is uneven:

• Windows 10/11 — needs a paid codec from the Microsoft Store unless you already have it from a bundled device. Many people don't have it.
• Older Android — most Android phones can't open HEIC at all. Newer Samsung and Pixel devices handle it, but it's inconsistent.
• Web browsers — Chrome and Firefox on desktop do not natively display HEIC. Safari on Apple devices does.
• Many online services — profile photo uploaders, form attachments, document submissions — often only accept JPG or PNG.

The result: HEIC is brilliant on Apple devices, but a friction point the moment you hand a file to anyone outside the Apple ecosystem.

When to keep HEIC

If you're shooting photos for yourself and staying inside Apple's world — iPhone, iPad, Mac, iCloud — there's no reason to change anything. HEIC gives you better quality at half the storage cost, and everything opens seamlessly. Keep the default.

Same if you're archiving: HEIC preserves more colour information than JPG, so long-term archival quality is better, not worse. If you re-convert to JPG years later, you're starting from a higher-fidelity source.

When to convert to JPG (or PNG)

Convert when you need to share with people or services outside Apple's ecosystem:

• Sending photos to someone on Windows or Android
• Uploading a profile picture, avatar, or document attachment to a website
• Submitting photos to a print shop, event photographer, or estate agent
• Posting anywhere that strips or rejects HEIC (some social platforms, email clients)
• Using photos in a non-Apple design tool like Canva, Figma, or Adobe XD on Windows

For transparent images (logos, screenshots with transparent backgrounds) convert to PNG rather than JPG — JPG doesn't support transparency and will fill it with white.

How to convert without uploading your photos

Most "free" converters you find online work by uploading your photos to their servers, converting them there, and sending the result back. That means your photos — which might include faces, locations, or private moments — are sitting on a stranger's server, even if briefly. imgAxe converts directly in your browser. The file goes from your device to your device, and no data is transmitted anywhere.