Convert HEIC to JPG — iPhone Photos on Any Device

Step by Step

1. 1

   Open the Converter

   Go to PikaEdit HEIC to JPG. No account or app installation needed.

2. 2

   Drop Your HEIC Files

   Drag and drop one or more .heic files onto the drop zone, or click to browse. Files stay on your device.

3. 3

   Wait for Conversion

   Each file is decoded and re-encoded as JPG. A progress indicator shows conversion status. The first run may take a moment while the decoder loads.

4. 4

   Download

   Click the download icon next to each converted file, or use Download All to get a ZIP of all results.

Why iPhones Save Photos as HEIC

Apple introduced HEIC (High Efficiency Image Container) in iOS 11 as the default camera format. HEIC files are roughly half the size of equivalent JPGs while maintaining the same visual quality — a meaningful saving when a modern iPhone produces 12–48 megapixel photos.

The trade-off is compatibility: HEIC is based on the HEIF standard and requires a decoder. Windows 10 and 11 can open HEIC with the free Microsoft HEIF Image Extensions, but many apps, websites, and older devices do not have this codec. JPG has been universally supported since the mid-1990s.

The Quickest Way to Get JPGs off Your iPhone

There are two ways to avoid the HEIC format entirely before you even transfer photos:

• •On iPhone, go to Settings → Camera → Formats and select 'Most Compatible' — this makes the camera save in JPG from that point forward
• •On iPhone, go to Settings → Photos → Transfer to Mac or PC and select 'Automatic' — iOS converts photos to JPG automatically when you transfer via USB or AirDrop to a non-Apple device
• •These settings only affect future photos or transfers — existing HEIC files on your device or already transferred to a computer still need conversion

How the Browser Conversion Works

The tool uses a JavaScript HEIC decoder running inside your browser via WebAssembly. The decoder reads the HEIC file from memory, decodes each image frame, and re-encodes it as a standard JPEG — all without any server communication.

The first conversion may take a moment while the decoder module loads. Subsequent conversions in the same session are faster because the module stays cached.

Multi-picture HEIC files (Apple Live Photos and burst shots store multiple frames in one .heic file) are decoded and each frame can be saved individually.

Quality During Conversion

Converting from HEIC to JPG involves re-encoding to a different format. The tool uses a high-quality JPEG encoding setting (95 out of 100) to minimise quality loss during the format change. At this setting, the difference between the original and the converted image is imperceptible to the human eye in normal viewing conditions.

The converted JPG will be somewhat larger than the HEIC source because JPG is less efficient for the same visual quality. This is expected — if you need to reduce the file size afterwards, run it through PikaEdit's image compressor.

Batch Conversion

You can drop multiple HEIC files at once. Each file is converted independently and shown in a result list. Download each converted JPG individually, or use the Download All button to get a ZIP archive of all conversions.

For a large number of photos (100+), a desktop tool may be faster — browser processing is limited to your device's single-thread JavaScript performance.

Privacy

Your photos never leave your device. No file is uploaded to a server at any point in the process. This matters for personal or confidential photos — the conversion happens entirely locally.

Open the browser network tab while converting to confirm there are no upload requests.

Frequently Asked Questions