Images

The HEIC format

The format iPhone and iPad have used to save photos since iOS 11: it takes about half the space of a JPG of similar quality. The downside is compatibility, because Windows, many websites and various programs can’t open it without extensions.

Drop your files hereor (HEIC and over 40 other formats). You can also paste an image.No upload: everything happens on your device

Fact sheet

HEIC

HEIC / HEIF (High Efficiency Image File Format)

Best for: Storing photos on your phone while using little space.
Limits: Often rejected by websites, online forms and Windows computers: to share photos, it’s best to convert them to JPG.
Compression: lossy (HEVC)
Transparency: Yes
Animation: No
Extensions: .heic .heif
MIME type: image/heic
Since: 2015

Convert HEIC to…

The HEIC format can be read and converted, but not created: browsers don’t have a reliable HEIC encoder yet.

Tools for HEIC files

Questions about the HEIC format

How do I open a HEIC file?

Usually a double click is enough: operating systems and the most common programs recognise it. If the program or website you use won’t accept it, you can convert it here to a more common format, for example JPG.

What extension do HEIC files have?

.heic, .heif. The MIME type is image/heic.

Does converting a HEIC lose quality?

It depends on the target format: to lossless formats (PNG, FLAC, WAV) nothing is lost; to compressed formats (JPG, MP3, MP4) you can choose the quality to balance size and result.