HEIC vs JPG: what the difference is, and when to convert
Your iPhone shoots HEIC to save space at higher quality, but the rest of the world still runs on JPG. Here is exactly what changes between the two, and when converting is worth it.
What HEIC and JPG actually are
JPG (also written JPEG) is the universal photo format the entire web was built on. It dates to the early 1990s and is understood by virtually every device, browser, app, and print service on earth. HEIC is much newer: the name stands for High Efficiency Image Codec, and a .heic file is really a HEIF container (High Efficiency Image File Format) holding an image compressed with the HEVC/H.265 codec. In plain terms, JPG is the lingua franca and HEIC is the modern, more efficient newcomer that most non-Apple software still struggles to read.
Why iPhones default to HEIC
Apple switched the default camera format to HEIC in iOS 11 back in 2017, and the reason is storage. HEIC files are typically 40 to 50 percent smaller than an equivalent JPG at no visible loss in quality, which matters a lot when iPhones shoot ever-higher-resolution photos. HEIC also supports 16-bit color (JPG is limited to 8-bit), survives repeated edits better, and can bundle extras a single JPG cannot: Live Photo sequences, depth maps, and HDR gain maps. So the format genuinely is better on paper. The catch is the next section.
When you actually need to convert to JPG
You convert when something on the receiving end cannot read HEIC, which is more common than Apple's marketing suggests. Windows 10 and 11 do not open HEIC out of the box (you must install Microsoft's HEIF Image Extensions), Chrome, Firefox, and Edge will download a HEIC instead of displaying it, and Android support is inconsistent across manufacturers. The practical triggers: uploading to a website or web form, posting to Instagram or Facebook, ordering prints, attaching photos for a job application or insurance claim, or simply sending a picture to a Windows or Android user who replies that they cannot open it. One useful detail: if you AirDrop or email from an iPhone, iOS often auto-converts to JPG on the way out, so you only hit problems when the raw .heic file travels intact.
Does converting hurt quality, and what about metadata?
Converting HEIC to JPG does not visibly degrade the picture at a sane quality setting (85 percent and up). You lose HEIC's efficiency advantage, not its appearance, so the resulting JPG looks essentially identical, just larger on disk. The bigger thing to watch is metadata. Standard EXIF data, including the timestamp, camera settings, and GPS coordinates, carries over with a good converter, but Apple-specific extras like depth maps, Live Photo motion, and HDR gain maps cannot exist in a JPG and are dropped. Note the privacy flip side: that surviving GPS tag pinpoints where the photo was taken to within a few meters, so if you are sharing publicly you may want to strip location data separately.
If you don't want to convert at all
You can also tell the iPhone to stop shooting HEIC. Go to Settings, then Camera, then Formats, and choose Most Compatible to capture JPG directly from now on. This is the right call if you constantly share to non-Apple devices and do not care about the storage savings. It only affects new photos, though, so any HEIC already in your library still needs converting if you want JPGs of those. Many people leave the camera on High Efficiency and just convert the handful of photos they need to send out.
How to convert HEIC to JPG without uploading your photos
Most free HEIC-to-JPG converters are websites that upload your image to a server, convert it there, and hand it back, meaning a copy of your personal photo now lives on someone else's machine. That is an avoidable risk, especially for photos with faces, documents, or location data. A better approach is conversion that runs entirely in your browser on your own device, so the file is decoded and re-encoded locally and never leaves your computer or phone. You can verify this kind of tool by turning on airplane mode: if conversion still works offline, nothing is being uploaded.
Frequently asked
Is HEIC better than JPG?
Technically yes for capture and storage: HEIC files are roughly 40 to 50 percent smaller at the same quality and support richer color and extras like depth and Live Photos. But JPG wins decisively on compatibility, since nearly everything can open it. The best format depends on what you are doing: keep HEIC on your phone, convert to JPG when you need to share, upload, or print.
Will I lose photo quality converting HEIC to JPG?
Not in any way you will notice at a normal quality setting. The picture looks essentially identical; you simply give up HEIC's file-size efficiency, so the JPG is larger on disk. You are making the photo compatible, not degrading it.
Does converting to JPG remove the location and EXIF data?
A good converter keeps standard EXIF such as the date, camera settings, and GPS coordinates, while Apple-specific extras like depth maps and Live Photo motion are dropped because JPG cannot store them. Because the GPS tag does carry over and pinpoints where a photo was taken, strip location data separately if you are sharing the image publicly.
Why are my iPhone photos saving as HEIC in the first place?
Apple made HEIC the default camera format in iOS 11 to save storage at higher quality. To switch to JPG going forward, open Settings, Camera, Formats and choose Most Compatible. That only changes new photos, so existing HEIC files still need converting.
Can I convert HEIC to JPG without uploading my files to a website?
Yes. nimbril's Convert tool runs entirely in your browser on your device, so the photo is converted locally and never uploaded. You can confirm it by enabling airplane mode and converting offline.