If you are using iPhone, then you might be familiar with the image formats like HEIC and HEIF. Apple uses High Efficiency Image Format (HEIF) instead of the traditional JPG or PNG for saving images in iPhone. It help to reduce the file size while retaining the quality. However, the problem comes when you share the images to other devices like Mac or Windows. Because your favorite image editor may not support these formats. In such a situation, you need to convert HEIC to JPEG for editing the images. If you wonder how to convert HEIC image format, here is the step by step instructions on Mac and Windows.
HEIF and HEIC Image Formats in iPhone
First let us explain about these HEIF/HEIC formats in iPhone before explaining the conversion process. Simply open the Camera app in iPhone and take a picture. Now go to Photos app and open the picture you have taken. Swipe the picture up or tap on the information icon from the bottom to see its properties. You can see the image format is HEIF along with device and other details.
When you are viewing the picture, tap on the share icon and AirDrop it to your Mac. You can see the image format is HEIC in Mac. While HEIC is for individual image which you will receive in Mac, HEIF is a container format which can contain images and videos together. You can use this HEIF images for taking live photos and using as a wallpaper in iPhone.
Convert HEIC to JPEG or PNG in Mac Using Finder Quick Actions
When you are viewing HEIC image in Finder, click on the “Convert Image” option. Otherwise, right-click on the image file name and select “Quick Actions > Convert Image” option.
If you are not seeing the option, click on the “More” option and select “Customize”. This will open “Extensions” preferences section in Mac where you can enable “Convert Image” for “Finder” app.
Note: You can also reach extensions preferences section from “Apple Logo Menu > System Preferences… > Extensions”.
When you click on Convert Image option, it will show a pop-up where you can select the following details:
- Image format – JPEG, PNG or HEIF
- Image Size – Small, medium, large or actual size
- Option to enable preserve metadata
For example, you can select JPEG, size as small and click on “Convert to JPEG” button. This will create a copy of the image in JPEG format with the name as “Image_name Size”. The image will be created in the same folder of the HEIC image.
Note: We converted a HEIC image of 1.7MB size to a JPEG and PNG with actual size preserving metadata. The resulted images are in 2.8MB (JPEG) and 12.3MB (PNG) size respectively. This is the reason Apple is using HEIC format to reduce the size while keeping the quality of the images.
Convert with Preview App
The next option in Mac is to use the default Preview app for converting HEIC to JPEG or PNG formats.
- Double click on the HEIC image to open it with Preview app.
- Go to “File” menu and select “Export…” option.
- On the “Export As” pop-up, select the format as JPEG or PNG and save to get the converted image.
- You have also other formats like JPEG-2000, OpenEXR, PDF and TIFF. Except PNG format, all other formats have an option to reduce the file size by changing the quality or compression level.
Convert HEIC to JPEG or PNG in Windows PC
Earlier, Windows did not offer any in-built tool for viewing HEIC/HEIF images. If you are sending HEIC image from your iPhone to Windows PC through email or file transfer apps, you will automatically receive the file in JPEG format. However, this is no more the case and the latest version of Photos app in Windows 11/10 supports viewing and converting HEIC images. Simply open the image with Photos app and press “Control + S”. This will open “Save as” dialog where you can change the format to JPEG or PNG and convert the image. You can also try the default Paint for viewing and converting HEIC images in Windows PC.
Using Third-Party App in Windows
In case, if your Photos and Paint apps do not support HEIC format then you can use any third-party apps or online tools to convert the format. Go to Microsoft Store and search for “heic” to find a list of free and premium apps. You can install any of the free app to convert HEIC to JPEG or PNG format.
There are also apps like Snagit not available in Microsoft Store which you can use for viewing and converting HEIC files. However, this is premium only app and you need to purchase a license from the developer’s website to download and install the app.
Convert HEIC Image Using Online Tools
If you do not want to install an app, then the alternate option is to convert the image using online tool like freeconvert. The advantage is that you can use the online tools from any browser in web or mobile.
- Go to HEIC to JPG converter tool offered by freeconvert website.
- Click “Choose Files” button and upload your image. You have option to select the file from your device, Google Drive, Drobox or from any website’s URL.
- After uploading HEIC file, select the output format as JPG to PNG. If required, click on the gear icon to open advanced settings where you can adjust size, compression, orientation and metadata options.
- Click on “Convert to JPG/PNG” button to start the conversion process.
- It will take some time for conversion to complete. Finally, you will see a “Done” button with the size of the converted image. Click on “Download JPG/PNG” button and save the converted image to your device.
The free version of the tool has restrictions on file size and number of concurrent uploads for batch processing. You may need to get the premium version for removing these restrictions.
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