HEIC file format
HEIC is what your iPhone saves by default: roughly half the size of a JPEG at the same quality, and a format Windows still asks you to pay for.
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What is HEIC?
HEIC is Apple's name for an image stored in the HEIF container using the HEVC video codec — the same codec behind 4K Blu-ray. Apple switched to it in iOS 11 in 2017, and the size saving is real: a photo that would be 4 MB as JPEG typically lands around 2 MB with no visible difference, because HEVC's intra-frame prediction is a generation ahead of JPEG's block transform.
The container matters as much as the codec. A single .heic file can hold a burst sequence, a Live Photo's accompanying video, the depth map used for Portrait mode, an edit history that lets you revert to the original, and thumbnails, all as separate items with their own metadata. That is why extracting "the photo" from a HEIC sometimes yields something different than expected.
The friction is licensing. HEVC is covered by patent pools that charge royalties, so Microsoft ships Windows without the decoder and sells the HEIF Image Extensions separately, while many editors, upload forms and older Android phones simply refuse the file. Sending a HEIC to someone outside the Apple ecosystem is the single most common reason people convert one to JPEG.
| Extension | .heic |
|---|---|
| Category | Image |
| MIME type | image/heic |
| Released | 2015 |
| Developed by | MPEG (HEIF), Apple |
| Compression | Lossy |
| Transparency | Yes |
| Animation | Yes |
HEIC: frequently asked questions
- Why can Windows not open my HEIC photos?
- Because HEVC decoding is patent-encumbered and Microsoft does not bundle the codec. Windows offers the HEIF Image Extensions in the Store, historically as a paid item, and some manufacturers preinstall it. Converting to JPEG avoids the issue entirely and works on any machine.
- Does converting HEIC to JPEG lose quality?
- Slightly, since both formats are lossy and you are re-encoding. At a JPEG quality of 90 or above the difference is essentially invisible, though the file usually doubles in size. Keep the HEIC original if you have the storage, and treat the JPEG as a copy for sharing.
- How do I stop my iPhone saving in HEIC?
- Settings, Camera, Formats, then choose Most Compatible instead of High Efficiency. New photos are saved as JPEG from that point on. Existing HEIC files are unaffected, and you give up roughly half the storage efficiency in exchange for universal compatibility.
- Is HEIC the same as HEIF?
- HEIF is the container standard; HEIC is the common case of that container holding HEVC-encoded images, which is what Apple produces. You may also see .heif files whose contents use a different codec, so the extensions are related but not interchangeable in every tool.
- What happens to Live Photos when I convert?
- The still frame is extracted and the accompanying video is dropped, because JPEG and PNG hold a single image and nothing else. Depth maps used for Portrait blur and any stored edit history are lost too, so keep the original if you may want to re-edit later.
- Why does a HEIC look different after conversion?
- HEIC can store 10-bit colour and wide-gamut or HDR data that JPEG cannot represent, so the converter has to map it into 8-bit sRGB. A poor tone mapping shows up as flatter highlights or shifted colours, which is why results vary noticeably between converters.